THE  HOPI  INDIANS 


By  WALTER  HOUGH 

Curator  Division  of  Ethnology,  United  States  National  Museum , 
Washington,  D.  C. 


CEDAR  RAPIDS.  IOWA 
THE  TORCH  PRESS.  1915 


C  O  P  Y  R  I  O  II  I 

1915 
Bv  THB  TORCH  P 

April 


To  My  Wife 


CONTENTS 

THE  COUNTRY,  TOWNS,  AND  PEOPLES  .  .  13 

SOCIAL  LIFE      .        .        .        .  .  .  28 

FOOD  AND  BEARING  .        .        .  .  .  .  49 

THE  WORKERS  ....  .  .  .  69 

AMUSEMENTS    .        .        .        .  .  .  .  102 

BIRTH,  MARRIAGE  AND  DEATH  .  .  .  .  114 

RELIGIOUS  LIFE 132 

MYTHS    .1        .        .        .        .  .  .  .  179 

TRApITIONS  AND  HISTORY         .  .  .  .  201 

BRH^F  BIOGRAPHIES  .        .        .  ...  218 

THE  ANCIENT  PEOPLE      .        .  .  .  .  250 

INDEX  263 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 


PREFACE 

Whoever  visits  the  Hopi  falls  perforce  under  the 
magic  influence  of  their  life  and  personality,  af  any 
one  entertains  the  belief  that  "a  good  Indian  ifr  a  dead 
Indian,"  let  Mm  travel  to  the  heart  of  the  Southwest 
and  dispel  his  illusions  in  the  presence  of  the  sturdy, 
self -supporting,  self-respecting  citizens  of  tlie  pueblos. 
Many  sojourns  in  a  region  whose  fascinations  are  sec 
ond  to  no  other,  experiences  that  were  happy  and  as 
sociations  with  a  people  who  interest  all  coming  in 
contact  with  them  combined  to  indite  the  following 
pages.  If  the  writer  may  seem  biased  in  favor  of  the 
"Quaker  Indians,"  as  Lummis  calls  them,  be  it  known 
that  lie  is  moved  by  affection  not  less  than  by  respect 
for  the  Hopi  and  moreover  believes  that  his  commenda 
tions  are  worthily  bestowed. 

The  recording  of  these  sidelights  on-  the  Hopi  far 
from  being  an  irksome  ta-sk  has  been  a  pleasure  which 
it  is  hoped  may  be  passed  on  to  the  reader,  who  may 
here  receive  an  impression  of  a  tribe  of  Indians  living 
at  the  threshold  of  modern  civilizing  influences  and 
still  retaining  in  great  measure  the  life  of  the  ancient 
house-builders  of  the  umvatered  lands. 

To  Mr.  F.  W.  Hodge  of  the  'Bureau  of  American 


12  PREFACE 

Ethnology  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution,  a  fellow 
worker  in  the  Pueblo  field,  grateful  acknowledgments 
are  due  for  his  criticism  and  advice  in  the  preparation 
of  this  book.  The  frontispiece  is  by  that  distinguished 
amateur  P.  G.  Gates  of  Pasadena.  Under  the  auspices 
of  the  explorations  carried  on  by  Dr.  J.  Walter 
Fewkes,  for  the  Bureau  of  American  Ethnology,  the 
writer  had  in  1896  his  first  introduction  to  the  Hopi,  a 
favor  and  a  pleasure  that  will  always  be  remembered 
with  gratitude  on  his  part.  The  indebtedness  of  sci 
ence  to  the  researches  of  Dr.  Fewkes  among  the  Hopi 
is  very  great  and  this  book  has  profited  by  his  inspira 
tion  a-s  well  as  by  his  counsel. 


THE  COUNTRY,  TOWNS,  AND  PEOPLES 

The  Hopi,  or  Peaceful  People,  as  their  name  ex- 
presses,  live  in  six  rock-built  towns  perched  on  three 
mesas  in  northeastern  Arizona.  They  number  about 
1,600  and  speak  a  dialect  of  the  language  called  the 
Shoshonean,  the  tongue  of  the  Ute,  Comanche,  and 
other  tribes  in  the  United  States.  There  is  another 
town,  called  Hano,  making  up  seven  on  these  mesas, 
but  its  people  are  Tewas  who  came  from  the  Rio  Grande 
valley  in  New  Mexico  more  than  two  centuries  ago. 

There  are  a  number  of  ways  of  reaching  the  Hopi 
pueblos.  If  one  would  go  in  by  the  east,  he  may 
choose  to  start  from  Holbrook  on  the  Santa  Fe  Pacific 
Railroad,  or  Winslow  (two  days  each),  or  by  the  west 
from  Canyon  Diablo  (two  days),  or  Flagstaff  (three 
days) .  The  estimates  of  time  are  based  on  ' '  traveling 
light"  and  with  few  interruptions.  A  longer  journey 
may  be  made  from  Gallup,  during  which  the  Canyon 
de  Chelly,  with  its  wonderful  cliff  dwellings,  may  be 
visited  if  one  has  a  sufficient  outfit  and  plenty  of  time. 

The  home-land  of  the  Hopi,  known  as  Tusayan  from 
old  times,  is  a  semi-desert,  lying  a  mile  and  a  quarter 


14  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

above  sea-level. .  It  is  deeply  scarred  by  canyons  and 
plentifully  studded  with  buttes  and  mesas,  though 
there  are  vast  stretches  which  seem  level  till  one  gets 
closer  acquaintance.  From,  the  pueblos  the  view  is 
open  from  the  northwest  to  the  southeast,  and  unin 
terrupted  over  the  great  basin  of  the  Colorado  Chi- 
quito,  or  Little  Colorado  River,  rimmed  on  the  far 
horizon  by  the  peaks  of  the  San  Francisco,  Mogollon, 
and  White  Mountains,  while  in  the  other  quarters 
broken  mesas  shut  out  the  view. 

The  rainfall  almost  immediately  sinking  into  the 
sandy  wastes,  determines  that  there  shall  be  no  peren 
nially-flowing  rivers  in  Tusayan,  and  that  springs 
must  be  few  and  far  between  and  the  most  valued  of 
all  possessions.  Were  it  not  for  winter  snows  and 
summer  thunder-storms,  Tusayan  would  be  a  desert 
indeed. 

The  hardy  grasses  and  desert  plants  do  their  best  to 
cover  the  nakedness  of  the  country ;  along  the  washes 
are  a  few  cottonwoods ;  on  the  mesas  are  junipers  and 
pinyons;  and  in  the  higher  lands  to  the  north  small 
oaks  strive  for  an  existence.  At  times,  when  the  rains 
are  favoring,  plants  spring  up  and  the  desert  is  painted 
with  great  masses  of  color ;  here  and  there  are  stretches 
green  with  grass  or  yellow  with  the  flowering  bunches 
of  the  "rabbit  brush"  or  gray  with  the  ice  plant.  In 
sheltered  spots  many  rare  and  beautiful  flowers  may 
be  found. 

The  Hopi  enjoy  a  summer  climate  the  temperature 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  15 

of  which  is  that  of  Maine  and  a  winter  climate  that  is 
far  less  severe  than  the  latter,  since  most,  days  are 
bright  and  the  sun  has  power.  Even  in  the  warmest 
season  the  nights  are  cool,  and  an  enjoyable  coolness  is 
found  by  day  in  the  shade.  The  dryness  of  the  region 
renders  it  ideal  for  healthful  sleeping  in  the  open  air. 
A  pure  atmosphere  like  that  of  the  sea  bathes  Tu- 
sayan ;  no  microbes  pollute  it  with  their  presence  and 
it  fills  the  body  with  good  blood  and  an  exhilaration 
like  wine. 

Perforce  the  Hopi  are  agricultural,  and  since  there 
is  little  game  to  be  hunted,  they  are  also  largely  vege 
tarians,  their  chief  food  being  corn.  When  the  corn 
crop  fails  the  desert  plants  are  relied  on  to  prevent 
starvation.  The  Hopi  thus  form  a  good  example  of  a 
people  whose  very  existence  depends  on  the  plants  of 
the  earth,  and  it  speaks  well  for  their  skill  as  farmers, 
in  so  unfavorable  an  environment,  that  there  are  any 
of  them  living  in  Tusayan  at  this  day. 

Out  of  ^this  environment  the  Hopi  has  shaped  his  re 
ligious  beliefs,  whose  strenuous  appeal  is  for  food  and 
life  from  the  grasping  destroyers  of  nature  that  whelm 
him.  And  in  like  manner  he  has  drawn  from  this 
niggard  stretch  his  house,  his  pottery,  baskets,  clothing 
and  all  the  arts  that  show  how  man  can^rise  above  his 
environment.  But  let  us  have  a  closer  view  of  this 
Indian  who  is  so  worthy  of  the  respect  of  his  superiors 
in  culture. 

The  Hopi  man  is  moderate  of  stature,  well-framed, 


16  MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND 

hard-muscled,  and  agile,  since  he  depended  on  his  own 
feet  for  going  anywhere  and  on  his  arms  for  work  be 
fore  the  day  of  the  burro  and  the  horse.  Black, 
straight  hair  worn  long,  brownish  skin,  the  smooth 
and  expressive  face  in  the  young  men,  intensifying  as 
they  grow  older,  bringing  out  the  high  cheek-bones,  the 
nose,  the  large  mouth  and  accenting  them  with 
wrinkles,  but  never  developing  a  sullen,  ferocious  cast 
of  countenance,  always  preserving  the  lines  of  worth 
and  dignity  and  the  pleasing  curves  of  humor  and 
good-fellowship  to  the  end  of  life,  —  these  are  the 
salient  characters  of  the  Hopi. 

The  same  remarks  apply  to  the  other  sex,  who  from 
childhood  to  old  age  run  the  course  in  milder  degree. 
Many  of  the  maidens  are  pretty  and  the  matrons  are 
comely  and  wholesome  to  behold.  The  old,  wrinkled 
and  bowed  go  their  way  with  quiet  mien  and  busy 
themselves  with  the  light  duties  in  which  their  experi 
ence  counts  for  much. 

In  spite  of  the  luxuriant  hair  that  adorns  the  heads 
of  this  people,  one  may  notice  the  difference  of  head 
shape  which  distinguishes  them  from  the  tribes  of  the 
plains.  The  cradle-board  is  partly  responsible  for 
this,  since,  from  infancy,  the  children  are  bound  to  the 
cradle  and  obliged  to  lie  on  the  back  for  longer  or 
shorter  intervals,  and  thus  begins  the  flattening  of  the 
back  of  the  skull.  But  the  heads  of  the  women  are 
rarely  flattened,  probably  because  the  girls  are  not  so 
well  cared  for  as  the  boys. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  17 

There  are  among  the  Hopi  a  greater  number  of 
albinos  in  proportion  to  the  population  than  may  be 
found  almost  anywhere  else.  They  go  about  their 
avocations  like  the  rest  and  are  in  no  way  regarded  as 
different  from  their  kin.  The  impulse  is  to  address 
them  in  English,  and  one  feels  surprised  when  they  do 
not  comprehend.  One  albino  maiden  of  Mishongnovi 
has  a  marvelous  growth  of  golden  hair  which  shows  to 
great  advantage  in  her  ample  hair  whorls.  Many 
students  believe  that  albinism  has  its  origin  in  the 
nervous  system,  and  perhaps  the  timidity  of  the  Hopi 
explains  the  number  of  these  remarkable  people  in 
their  midst;  but  this  is  a  theory,  based  on  a  theory. 
It  has  been  observed  that  some  of  the  albinos  are  be 
low  the  average  in  intelligence,  and  it  has  been  ascer 
tained  that  the  larger  proportion  of  them  are  second 
in  order  of  birth  in  a  family. 

From  the  number  of  old  people  in  the  pueblos  one 
would  gain  the  impression  that  the  Hopi  are  long- 
lived.  All  things  considered,  this  is  doubtless  the 
truth,  but  there  are  no  statistics  to  settle  the  matter ; 
besides,  the  question  of  age  is  a.  doubtful  one  among 
the  Hopi  themselves.  If  "sans  everything"  is  any 
criterion  of  a  centenarian,  there  are  such  among  the 
Peaceful  People.  One  must  conclude  that,  on  passing 
childhood,  the  average  Hopi  is  due  for  a  second  term 
of  the  helpless  period. 

"Welcome"  is  not  written  over  every  Hopi  door, 
but  the  spirit  of  hospitality  pervades  the  entire  popu- 


18  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

lation.  This  is  one  of  the  pleasant  features  of  the 
Pueblos  and  is  the  chief  reason  why  the  Hopi  are  held 
in  friendly  remembrance  by  visitors.  An  acquaint 
ance  with  the  Indians  in  the  different  pueblos  of  the 
Southwest  will  convince  one  that  there  is  a  consider 
able  range  of  disposition  among  them.  Perhaps  the 
extremes  are  the  untractable  Santo  Domingans  and  the 
impressionable  Hopi.  It  seems  to  be  a  matter  of  the 
elements  of  which  the  tribes  have  been  made  up  and 
of  their  past  experiences  and  associations. 

High  up  on  the  gray  rocks  the  Hopi  towns  look  as 
though  they  were  part  of  the  native  cliff.  The  seven 
towns,  —  though  twenty  miles  and  three  distinct  mesas 
separate  the  extremes,  —  Hano  and  Oraibi,  —  are 
built  on  the  same  stratum  of  sandstone.  The  rock 
shows  tints  of  light  red,  yellow,  and  brown,  and  cleaves 
into  great  cubical  pillars  and  blocks,  leaving  the  face 
of  the  cliff  always  vertical.  Trails  at  different  points 
lead  up  over  the  low  masses  of  talus  and  reach  the  flat 
top  through  crevices  and  breaks  in  this  rock- wall,  often 
over  surfaces  where  pockets  have  been  cut  in  the  stone 
for  hand  and  foot.  A  very  little  powder,  properly  ap 
plied,  would  render  these  mesas  as  difficult  of  ascent 
as  the  Enchanted  Mesa  near  Acoma. 

Once  on  top  and  breathing  normally  after  the  four 
hundred  feet  or  so  of  precipitous  climbing,  one  sees 
why  the  outer  walls  of  the  towns  seem  to  be  a  con 
tinuation  of  the  living  rock.  The  houses  a,re  built  of 
slabs  of  stone  of  various  sizes,  quarried  from  the  mesa 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  19 

and  laid  up  in  mud.  They  are  of  terrace  style,  rarely 
more  than  of  two  stories,  flat-roofed,  and  grouped  in 
masses  so  as  to  form  streets  and  plazas  and  conform 
ing  to  the  irregularities  of  the  surface  and  outline  of 
the  mesas.  For  this  reason  not  much  order  can  be 
found  in  a  Hopi  pueblo.  The  uneven  surface  of  the 
mesas  gives  a  varying  height  to  the  houses  and  in 
creases  the  picturesqueness  of  the  skyline. 

These  Hopi  towns  are  the  most  primitive  of  the  in 
habited  pueblos.  Before  us  is  a  picture  of  the  ancient 
life  as  true  as  may  be  found  in  this  day  of  inquisitive 
travelers  and  of  rapid  transportation  to  the  ends  of 
the  earth.  But  this  state  of  things  is  changing  with 
increasing  rapidity ;  the  Hopi  is  becoming  progressive 
and  yearns  for  the  things  of  the  white  man  with  in 
creasing  desire,  therefore  it  is  evident  that,  before 
many  years,  much  that  is  charming  in  Tusayan  by 
reason  of  the  ancient  touch  about  it  will  have  vanished 
from  the  lives  of  its  brown  inhabitants. 

This  change  is  most  marked  at  Walpi,  because  the 
East  Mesa  people  have  longest  been  in  contact  with  the 
civilizing  influences  of  schools,  missions,  and  trading 
posts ;  besides,  they  were  always  apparently  the  most 
tractable  of  the  Hopi.  Many  families  have  abandoned 
the  villages  on  the  cliffs,  and  their  modern,  red-roofed 
houses  dotting  the  lower  ground  near  the  fields  show 
the  tendency  to  forsake  the  crowded  hill-towns.  But 
the  old  towns  exist  in  all  their  primitiveness  and  fur 
nish  bits  of  surpassing  interest  to  lovers  of  the  pic- 


20  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

turesque.  To  these  the  bulk  of  the  conservative  Hopi 
still  cling  with  all  the  force  of  their  inherited  instinct. 

Two  centuries  ago  visitors  arrived  at  "Walpi  from 
the  Rio  Grande.  These  were  a  tribe  of  Tewa,  invited 
to  come  to  Tusayan  to  aid  in  fighting  off  the  Apache 
and  Ute,  those  wily  nomad  adversaries  with  whom 
the  Peaceful  People  for  so  long  had  to  contend.  Here 
they  have  lived  ever  since  in  their  village  of  llano,  at 
the  head  of  the  most  readily  accessible  trail  up  the 
mesa,  preserving  their  language  and  customs,  and  be 
sides  their  own  tongue,  speaking  well  the  language  of 
their  friends  and  neighbors.  The  Tewa  brought  with 
them  their  potter's  art  and  now  have  the  honor  to  be 
practically  the  only  makers  of  earthenware  in  Tu 
sayan.  Nampeo  is  the  best  potter  at  Hano  and  her 
work  shows  her  to  be  a  worthy  descendant  of  the 
ancient  artists,  whose  graceful  vessels  lie  with  the 
bones  of  the  dead  beneath  the  sands  of  the  great 
Southwest. 

Beyond  Hano,  and  midway  between  it  and  Walpi,  is 
Sichomovi,  which  signifies  "flower  mound."  Sicho- 
movi,  if  we  may  judge  from  the  good  preservation  of 
its  houses  and  the  regularity  with  which  the  town  is 
laid  out,  seems  to  be  comparatively  new,  and  indeed, 
there  is  traditionary  testimony  to  this  effect.  The 
dusky  historians  of  Walpi  relate  the  circumstances  of 
its  foundation,  when  the  yellow  flowers  grew  in  the 
crevices  of  the  rock  at  the  place  where  several  stranger 
clans  were  allowed  to  settle. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  21 

Passing  out  of  Sichomovi  and  crossing  a  narrow 
neck  of  the  mesa  traversed  by  a  well-worn  trail,  Walpi 
is  reached.  This  village  from  different  points  of  view 
presents  the  appearance  of  a  confused  jumble  of  dilap 
idated  houses,  and  a  walk  through  its  alleys  and  pas 
sages  confirms  the  impression.  Walpi  was  a  town  of 
necessity  and  was  erected  in  1590,  having  been  moved 
up  from  a  lower  point  after  troubles  with  the  Spanish 
conquistadores. 

Looking  down  from  the  town  one  may  trace  the  site 
of  Old  Walpi  and  descry  the  pottery-strewn  mounds  of 
still  older  settlements,  since  around  this  mesa  the  first 
comers  to  Tusayan  probably  located.  At  the  foot  of 
the  mesa  are  also  springs  and  shrines,  one  of  the  latter 
being  the  true  "center  of  the  world"  to  the  Hopi 
mind,  a  point  which  gave  the  ancients  much  trouble  to 
determine.  Along  the  ledges  are  corrals  for  the  mot 
ley  flocks  of  black  and  white  sheep  and  goats,  adepts 
in  subsisting  on  all  sorts  of  unpalatable  brush.  Far 
ther  down  in  the  level  are  the  fields,  at  the  proper  sea 
son  green  with  the  prospect  of  corn,  melons,  and  beans. 

Walpi  streets  are  the  living  rock  of  the  mesa  worn 
smooth  by  human  feet  and  swept  by  the  officious  wind- 
god,  whose  dry  air,  with  the  aid  of  the  sun,  form  the 
board  of  health  of  the  Hopiland.  This  rocky  surface 
must  have  been  a  great  trial  to  the  kiva  builders,  as 
traditional  custom  requires  that  such  meeting  places 
of  the  secret  societies  or  brotherhoods  should  be  under 
ground.  The  kivas  along  the  streets  thus  represent  a 


22  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

great  amount  of  work  in  their  construction,  and  it  is 
clear  that,  when  the  builders  found  a  cleft  in  the  rock 
or  a  niche  in  the  cliff-edge,  they  appropriated  it  as  the 
site  of  a  kiva,  then  built  an  outer  wall  overhanging 
the  precipice  arid  prepared  the  deep  oblong  room  with 
toilsome  labor,  for  they  had  only  the  rude  tools  of  the 
stone  age. 

The  two  poles  of  the  ladder  project  from  the  kiva 
hatchway,  and  one  may  descend  if  no  ceremony  is  on 
hand.  There  is  not  much  to  see  except  an  empty, 
smoke-blackened  room  with  stone-paved  floor,  plas 
tered  walls,  and  ceiling  crossed  by  heavy  beams.  Just 
in  front  of  the  ladder  is  a  fireplace,  consisting  of  a 
stone  box  sunk  in  the  floor,  and  the  portion  of  the 
room  back  of  the  ladder  is  elevated.  These  subter 
ranean  chambers  are  now  found  in  use  only  in  Tu- 
sayan,  where  this  manner  of  building  them,  along  with 
many  other  ancient  customs,  has  been  preserved  by 
the  Hopi  through  many  generations. 

Hopi  houses  are  small,  and  as  in  the  other  pueblos 
of  the  Southwest,  the  first  families  live  in  the  second 
stoiy,  which  is  reached  by  a  ladder.  In  recent  times, 
though,  the  ground  floor,  which  formerly  was  used 
chiefly  for  storage,  has  been  cleaned  out,  furnished 
with  doors,  and  occupied  as  habitations.  Steps  on  the 
dividing  walls  lead  to  the  upper  story  and  the  roof 
forms  a  general  loiteriiig-place.  The  living  room  is 
kept  in  good  order,  and  a  goodly  array  of  blankets, 
harness,  and  clothes  hanging  from  a  swinging  pole  are 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  23 

looked  on  with  pride  and  complacency.  In  the  gran 
ary,  which  is  generally  a  back  room,  the  ears  of  corn 
are  often  sorted  by  color  and  laid  up  in  neat  walls  and 
one  year's  crop  is  always  kept  in  reserve  for  a  bad 
season.  Red  corn,  yellow  corn,  white  corn,  blue  corn, 
black  corn,  and  mottled  corn  make  a  Hopi  grain  room 
a  study  in  color.  Three  oblong  hollowed  stones  or 
metates  of  graded  fineness  are  sunk  in  the  floor  of 
every  Hopi  house,  and  on  these,  with  another  stone 
held  in  the  hands,  the  corn  is  ground  to  fine  meal,  the 
grinders  singing  shrill  songs  at  their  back-breaking 
work. 

In  the  corner  of  the  baking-room  is  a  fireplace  cov 
ered  with  a  smoke  hood  and  containing  slabs  of  stone 
for  the  baking  of  -piki,  or  paper  bread,  while  scattered 
about  are  many  baskets,  jars,  bowls,  cups,  and  other 
utensils  of  pottery  well  fitted  for  the  purposes  of  the 
Hopi  culinary  art.  Outside  the  house  is  a  sunken  pit 
in  which  corn-pudding  is  baked. 

These  and  many  other  things  about  the  Hopi  vil 
lages  will  interest  the  visitor,  who  will  not  have  serious 
difficulty  in  overlooking  the  innovations  or  in  obtain 
ing  a  clear  idea  of  Pueblo  life  as  it  was  in  the  times 
long  past. 

If  one  crosses  the  plain  to  the  three  villages  of  the 
Middle  Mesa,  he  will  find  still  less  of  the  effect  of  con 
tact  with  modern  things.  Mushongnovi,  the  second 
town  of  Tusayan  in  point  of  size,  presented  as  late  as 
1906  a  perfect_picture  of  an  unmodified  piie^blo_onjts 


24  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

giant  mesa,  the  eastern  and  northern  walls  of  the  town 
blank  and  high  like  the  face  of  a  cliff.  Within  this 
closely-built  village  the  terraced  houses  face  the  streets 
and  open  plazas,  after  the  ancient  fashion.  Because 
of  their  harmony  with  their  primitive  surroundings, 
one  hesitates  to  believe  in  the  modernness  of  the  chim 
neys  of  these  pueblos,  yet  it  appears  to  be  true  that  the 
idea  is  of  Spanish  introduction. 

Shipaulovi,  on  its  high  vantage  point,  seems  newer 
than  Shumopavi,  its  neighbor,  the  latter  being  the 
v  most  regular  pueblo  in  Tusayan.  Some  fifteen  miles 
beyond  Shumopavi  is  Oraibi,  the  largest  of  the  seven 
Hopi  towns,  whose  rough  walls  give  it  an  appearance 
of  great  age.  Oraibi  held  out  longest  against  the 
white  intruders,  and  even  now  would  much  prefer  to 
be  left  alone  in  the  enjoyment  of  its  accustomed  ways, 
but  the  school-houses  and  the  red  roofs  brought  by  the 
white  man  increasingly  menace  its  old-world  notions. 

The  nearest  neighbors  of  the  Hopi  are  the  Navaho, 
that  large  and  rapidly  growing  tribe  who  are  what 
they  call  themselves,  Dene,  ' '  men. ' '  They  crowd  upon 
the  Hopi,  and  when  the  opportunity  offers  "raise" 
some  stock  or  dictate  with  sublime  egotism  the  conduct 
of  the  ceremonies.  Several  hundred  years  of  contact 
with  the  pueblo  folk  have  made  the  once  uncultured 
Navaho  in  many  respects  like  them.  The  timid  Hopi 
do  not  choose  to  affiliate  with  the  Navaho,  but  mar 
riages  are  not  infrequent  among  members  of  the  two 
tribes.  Generallv  it  is  a  Navaho  brave  who  seeks  a 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  25 

Hopi  maiden  to  wife,  coming  to  live  with  her  people, 
but  rarely  does  a  Hopi  youth  lead  a  "Teshab"  girl  to 
his  hearth  as  did  Anowita  of  Walpi. 

A  few  Zuni  have  cast  their  lot  at  Tusayan  and  sev 
eral  of  the  latter  live  at  Zuni  and  in  some  of  the  Rio 
Grande  pueblos.  Not  many  years  ago,  a  Hopi  was 
chief  of  an  important  fraternity  at  Sia,  a  pueblo  on 
the  Jemez  River  in  New  Mexico.  The  Zufii  are  quite 
neighborly  and  visit  Tusayan  to  witness  the  ceremonies 
or  to  exchange  necklaces  of  shell  and  turquoise  beads 
for  blankets.  Tradition  has  it  that  some  of  the  clans 
from  the  Rio  Grande  came  by  way  of  Zuni  and  that 
Sichomovi  has  a  strong  admixture  from  that  pueblo. 
In  support  of  this  it  may  be  said  that  the  Zuni  vis 
itors  are  usually  domiciled  at  Sichomovi,  where  they 
seem  very  much  at  home,  and  many  of  the  people  there 
speak  the  Zuni  language. 

At  the  time  of  the  ceremonies,  especially  those  per 
formed  in  summer,  Tewa  from  the  Rio  Grande  pueblos 
come  to  visit  and  trade  and  enjoy  the  merrymaking 
that  attends  the  dances.  Some  of  the  people  of  Hano 
have  visited  their  relatives  on  the  Rio  Grande,  but 
few  of  the  Hopi  are  so  far-traveled  in  these  days. 
There  has  been  for  centuries,  however,  more  or  less 
communication  across  the  vast  stretch  of  arid  country 
lying  between  the  Great  River  and  Tusayan,  and  in  a 
number  of  instances  in  the  distant  past,  whole  tribes 
have  emigrated  from  the  east  to  the  Hopi  country 
where  they  have  founded  new  towns.  Although  100 


26  MESA  POLK  OF  HOPILAND 

miles  away,  the  Havasupai  may  also  be  regarded  as 
near  neighbors  who  cross  the  desert  to  sell  their  fine 
baskets  and  superior  white-tanned  deerskins,  for 
which  articles  there  is  great  demand.  The  Hopi  also 
traverse  the  sandy  waste  to  visit  the  "People  of  the 
Ladders, ' '  as  they  call  the  Havasupai,  and  bring  back 
sacred  red  ocher  and  green  copper  stone  for  pigments. 
The  Havasupai  and  Hopi  are  likewise  linked  by  tradi 
tions  of  an  ancient  time. 

Long  ago,  say  the  Hopi,  the  Paiute,  who  are  uncul 
tured  but  strong  in  the  art  of  warfare,  came  down 
from  the  north  and  harassed  them  until  the  people  of 
Hano  vanquished  them.  The  Paiute,  although  re 
motely  related,  were  not  friendly  to  the  Hopi,  and  be 
sides,  there  was  much  of  value  to  be  seized  from  the 
mesa-dwellers.  For  this  reason  the  Hopi  did  not  cul 
tivate  the  friendship  with  the  Paiute  and  the  only 
one  of  that  tribe  living  in  Tusayan  is  * '  Tom  Sawyer, ' ' 
whose  portrait  is  drawn  in  another  place. 

Nor  were  the  Apache  more  desirable  neighbors.  The 
Hopi  tell  of  the  troublous  times  when  these  nomads 
came  from  the  south  and  compelled  them  to  draw  up 
their  ladders  from  the  cliff  at  night.  Still,  Paiute 
and  Apache  baskets  and  other  aboriginal  manufactures 
found  their  way  to  the  pueblos,  who  were  always  cos 
mopolitan  in  their  tastes  and  did  not  allow  tribal  en 
mity  to  interfere  with  trade. 

Far  to  the  south  another  people  were  friends  of  the 
Hopi.  Very  long  ago  the  Pima  were  closer  neighbors 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  27 

and  allies  of  some  of  the  Hopi  clans,  who  touched 
them  in  their  wide  migrations,  which  brought  them  to 
the  "Palatkwabi."  This  is  the  Red  Land  of  the 
south,  lying  on  the  Verde  River  and  its  tributaries. 
The  Hopi  lay  claim  to  the  Tonto  Basin  in  southern 
Arizona,  which  has  been  thought  to  be  their  ancient 
country  since  far  and  wide  over  this  southern  region 
is  found  the  yellow  pottery  so  characteristic  of  the 
golden  age  of  the  Hopi.  Sometimes  still  the  Hopi 
visit  the  Pima,  and  it  is  known  that  formerly  they 
joined  in  a  fair  that  wras  held  in  the  Pima  country  and 
brought  back  various  commodities  in  exchange  for 
their  own  products.  Even  today  agave  sweetmeats 
and  alder  bark,  the  latter  used  for  dyeing  leather,  are 
found  in  Hopi  dwellings,  having  been  brought  from 
beyond  "Apache  House,"  as  they  call  the  region 
south  of  the  San  Francisco  Mountains  where  the 
Apache  formerly  lived. 


II 

SOCIAL  LIFE 

When  the  crops  are  harvested  and  Indian  summer 
is  gone  and  the  cold  winds  buffet  the  mesas,  the  Hopi 
find  comfort  in  their  substantial  houses  around  their 
hearth-stones.  The  change  of  the  season  enforces  a 
pleasant  reunion  and  the  people  who  were  occupied 
with  the  ca.re  as  well  as  the  delights  of  outdoor  sum 
mer  life,  begin  to  get  acquainted  again. 

The  men  have  plenty  of  idle  time  on  their  hands,  — 
the  masks  need  repairing  and  refurbishing  with  new 
colors;  there  are  always  moccasins  to  be  made;  the 
carvers  of  dolls  construct  these  odd  painted  figures 
from  cottonwood  procured  during  the  summer,  and 
the  'weaver  works  at  his  loom.  Now  the  basket  maker 
draws  on  her  stock  of  split  yucca  leaves,  twigs  and 
grass,  but  the  potter's  craft  is  in  abeyance  till  the 
warm  months. 

One  would  think  that  the  winter  work  falls  pretty 
severely  on  the  women,  but  their  duties  are  largely  the 
same  in  all  seasons.  There  is  corn  to  be  ground,  food 
to  be  prepared,  and  water  to  be  carried  up  the  steep 
trails.  The  winter  store  must  be  guarded  against 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  29 

mice  and  vermin  and  occasionally  sunned  on  the  roof. 
There  are,  no  doubt,  many  cares  and  much  labor,  but 
the  women  take  their  time  and  everyone,  from  the 
little  child  to  the  experienced  old  grandmother,  lends 
a  helping  hand.  A  Hopi  woman  would  perhaps  not 
understand  our  kind  commiseration  for  the  lot  that 
her  sex  has  experienced  and  thriven  under  from  time 
immemorial. 

Winter  in  Tusayan  is  more  enjoyable  than  other 
wise,  as  the  sun  is  bright  and  the  sky  a  clear  blue. 
The  snows  of  winter  are  nearly  as  rare  as  the  rain 
storms  of  summer,  much  to  the  regret  of  the  Hopi. 
Often  the  cold  at  night  is  intense,  but  the  day  may 
have  the  crisp  though  mild  air  of  a  rare  day  in  spring 
at  the  East. 

Not  much  change  comes  over  the  landscape  of  Tu 
sayan  by  the  advent  of  winter.  There  are  few  trees 
to  lose  their  leaves  after  a  gorgeous  pageant  of  fare 
well.  The  desert  plants  scarcely  ever  alter  the  ap 
pearance  of  the  earth  by  their  leaf  tints  of  spring, 
summer,  or  autumn ;  with  their  diminutive  leaves  and 
sober  color  they  sink  into  the  vast  surface  and  are  lost 
among  the  vivid  aerial  tints  and  the  bright  hues  of  the 
rocks  and  plains.  There  are  no  rivers  to  be  covered 
by  a  sheen  of  ice,  and  rarely  does  a  mantle  of  snow 
reach  across  the  deserts  from  the  snow-clad  moun 
tains.  The  winds  rave  and  whirlwinds  swirl  the  sand 
along  the  plain  in  giant  columns,  while  the  sun  hangs 
lower  and  lower  in  the  southwest  until  the  Hopi  fear 


30  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

that  lie  will  finally  depart  and  leave  them  in  the  grasp 
of  winter.  But  the  priests  have  potent  charms  to 
draw  him  back,  arid  after  the  Soyalana  ceremony  at 
the  winter  solstice  anyone  can  see  that  the  sun  no 
longer  wanders. 

Those  Hopi  who  have  not  laid  in  a  supply  of  fuel 
must  go  wood-gathering  right  speedily  when  cold 
weather  approaches,  for  the  trees  are  distant  and  the 
day  is  hardly  long  enough  to  get  a  burro  load  piled 
on  the  house  wall.  Every  morning  also  the  flocks  of 
sheep  and  goats  must  be  driven  out  from  the  corrals 
on  the  ledges  under  the  mesas,  to  browse  on  the  leafless 
brush. 

October  is  called  the  Harvest  moon.  The  women 
who  garner  the  grain  hold  a  ceremony  at  this  time  arid 
great  is  the  feasting  and  rejoicing  in  the  pueblo.  The 
winter  tightens  in  November,  called  the  "Neophyte 
moon/'  since  the  youths  of  proper  age  are  initiated 
into  the  societies  in  this  month.  These  beginners  bear 
the  sportive  name  of  '  *  Pigeon  Hawks. ' '  In  even  years 
comes  the  great  ceremony  of  the  New  Fire,  full  of 
strange  rites  of  fire  worship  handed  down  from  the 
olden  time.  In  odd  years  occurs  the  Na-a-ish-nya 
ceremony,  which  like  the  other  is  performed  by  the 
New  Fire  Society.  By  December,  Tusayan  is  hard  in 
the  grip  of  winter,  and  as  the  spirits  are  held  fast  be 
neath  the  frozen  ground,  they  cannot  do  ill  to  anyone 
who  speaks  about  them,  so  that  many  legends  and 
stories  and  much  sacred  lore  are  freely  divulged 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  31 

around  the  glowing  fires  of  fat  piiion  wood  in  the 
Hopi  houses.  Everyone  is  also  on  the  qui  vive  for  the 
Soyaluiia,  in  many  respects  the  most  important  cere 
mony  in  the  Hopi  calendar,  when  the  first  kachiuas 
appear.  December  is  called  the  * '  Hoe  moon ' '  because 
in  this  month  it  is  prescribed  that  the  fields  shall  be 
cleared  for  the  spring  planting.  The  wind  has  per 
haps  done  its  share  toward  clearing  movable  things 
from  the  fields,  but  much  remains  to  be  done  in  level 
ing  the  surface  for  the  spring  sowing. 

No  month  of  winter  is  too  cold  for  a  ceremony. 
January,  called  the  "Prayer-stick  moon,"  brings  the 
Alosaka,  a  ceremony  of  the  Horn  Society  with  their 
grotesque  masks.  During  the  vicissitudes  of  this  hard 
month,  more  of  the  beloved  kachinas  return  to  their 
people  from  the  high  peaks  of  the  San  Francisco 
Mountains,  poetically  known  as  the  "snow  houses," 
and  to  these  ancestral  beings  many  petitions  are  made. 

February,  the  hardest  month  of  all  the  winter,  is 
called  the  " Getting-ready  moon."  It  was  in  this 
month  that  the  hero  of  the  Ka  china  people  found 
melons  and  green  corn  near  the  San  Francisco  Moun 
tains.  The  Powamu  ceremony  is  held  during  this 
moon. 

If  the  Hopi  should  have  nearly  reached  the  starva 
tion  point,  March  is  likely  to  inspire  a  hope  of  reach 
ing  the  end  of  the  disastrous  season,  for  in  sheltered 
places  a  few  shoots  of  green  appear,  and  if  the  mois 
ture  from  melting  snow  is  sufficient,  perhaps  the  little 


32  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

wiwa  plant  springs  up,  furnishing  palatable  and  nour 
ishing  greens.  For  some  reason  March  is  called  the 
' l  Prickly-pear  moon, ' '  and  it  is  the  only  month  named 
from  a  natural  object.  Perhaps  the  designation 
points  to  a  time  when  some  of  the  Hopi  lived  in  it 
clime  where  the  prickly-pear  bloomed  in  March.  This 
might  have  been  in  southern  Arizona,  whence  a  number 
of  clans,  for  instance,  such  as  the  "Agave  People," 
have  derived  their  names.  March  ushers  in  the  most 
disagreeable  part  of  the  year,  the  season  of  fierce 
winds  charged  with  dust  and  sand  which  drift  like 
snow  against  the  sides  of  the  mesas. 

This  chronicle  of  the  winter  of  the  Hopi,  incomplete 
as  it  is,  shows  that  the  "Peaceful  People'7  get  a  great 
deal  of  enjoyment  out  of  life  at  this  season.  Many 
important  ceremonies  belong  to  the  wintertime  and 
there  are  conventions  of  the  different  societies.  In 
the  underground  meeting-places  those  entitled  to  the 
privileges  drop  in  for  gossip,  as  at  a  club,  being  sure 
of  warmth,  agreeable  company,  and  perhaps  a  smoke 
to  while  away  the  time.  /  Around  the  fireside,  also, 
there  is  a  good  company,  and  plenty  of  stories,  well 
worth  the  hearing,  are  told.  ^  The  men  may  go  hunt 
ing  or  make  a  winter  journey  to  the  settlements  or 
the  mountains. 

As  for  the  cold,  the  Hopi  seem  to  regard  it  lightly. 
There  is  little  or  no  change  in  the  costume,  though  the 
blanket  or  the  rabbit-fur  robe  comes  in  handy  for  a 
wrap.  Tf  a  man  has  an  errand  out  of  doors  he  trusts 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  33 

to  running  to  keep  up  the  circulation.  After  the  cere 
monies,  the  men  usually  ascend,  scantily  clothed,  from 
the  superheated  kiyas  into  the  bitter  air,  with  utter 
disregard  for  the  rules  of  health.  The  purity  of  the 
air  is  a  saving  factor;  nevertheless,  pulmonary  dis 
eases  are  common,  due  to  the  close,  badly  ventilated 
houses  more  than  to  any  other  causes. 

Most  visitors  to  Tusayan  see  the  Hopiland  at  the 
best  season,  when  the  cornfields  are  green  and  the  cot- 
tonwoods  are  in  full  leaf,  when  the  desert  smiles  to  its 
greatest  capability  and  the  people  are  well  fed  and 
happy.  The  rebirth  of  Nature  begins  in  April,  when 
the  thrifty  fanners  cut  brush  and  set  up  long  wind 
breaks  to  protect  prospective  crops.  The  month  is 
named  for  this  circumstance,  and  like  everything  else 
at  the  pueblos  the  time  for  beginning  work  is  pre 
scribed,  according  to  custom,  by  those  in  authority 
over  the  clans. 

Frosts  and  lashing  winds  often  destroy  every  green 
shoot  in  the  spring,  save  the  native  plants,  which  are 
inured  to  the  weather,  and  the  people  frequently  have 
to  mourn  the  loss  of  their  peaches,  their  only  desir 
able  fruit,  for  which  they  owe  a  debt  to  the  Spanish 
friars  of  long  ago. 

In  the  "Waiting  moon,"  as  May  is  called,  all  is  ac 
tivity  in  the  fields,  for  the  planting  of  the  sweet  corn 
goes  merrily  on  and  the  Hopi  become,  for  most  of  the 
time,  an  out-door  people.  The  winds  perhaps  have 
abated  their  power  or  have  ceased  entirely,  and  life  is 


34  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

more  pleasant  under  the  warm  sun.  Still,  with  all  the 
work  incident  to  the  care  of  the  fields  there  is  time  for 
ceremony  and  during  the  period  between  the  arrival 
of  the  l^achinas  irf  December  and  their  departure  in 
July,  there  are  many  minor  celebrations  by  masked 
dancers  in  addition  to  the  great  monthly  ceremonies. 
Especially  interesting  in  the  season  of  awakening  life 
anl  growing  crops  are  these  kachina  dances  with  their 
pleasing  songs  and  pageantry,  their  unlimited  variety 
and  surprises.  The  "Peaceful  People"  enjoy  this 
season  in  the  highest  degree.  June  and  July  see  every 
Hopi  happy,  unless  there  is  something  constitutionally 
wrong  with  him  or  he  is  afflicted  with  sickness.  It  is 
difficult  to  realize  how  thoroughly  all  Hopi  life  is 
linked  with  growing  things,  showing  out  in  their  every 
word  and  action  and  entering  into  their  ideas  of  the 
unseen  world. 

When  the  sun  pauses  in  his  march  along  the  eastern 
horizon  at  the  summer  solstice,  the  Hopi  spend  the 
day  in  making  feather  prayer-plumes  as  petitions  for 
blessings.  These  children  of  the  sun  know  the  course 
of  Dawa,  the  sun,  and  read  his  positions  as  we  the 
hands  of  a  clock. 

With  the  departure  of  the  kachinas  a  new  class  of 
ceremonies  begins.  The  dancers  who  previously  ap 
peared  in  strange  masks  and  headgear  now  perform 
unmasked,  and  the  cumbrous  paraphernalia  is  laid 
away  for  another  year.  The  great  event  of  the  sum 
mer,  the  Snake  Dance,  is  now  at  hand,  and  everyone 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  35 

sets  about  preparing  for  a  good  time.  In  the  latter 
part  of  August,  after  this  ceremony,  the  pueblo  re 
sumes  its  normal  state  and  the  people  settle  down  to 
the  feast  of  good  things  from  their  fields,  which  they 
attack  with  primitive  zest  and  enjoyment.  It  is  great 
ly  to  the  credit  of  the  Hopi  that  they  work  well  and 
rest  well  like  the  unconscious  philosophers  they  are. 

The  moon  of  September  watches  over  a  scene  of 
peace  and  plenty  in  Tusayan.  The  cool,  clear  nights 
betoken  that  frosts  and  the  time  of  harvest  are  ap 
proaching.  The  heat  of  summer  is  gone  and  the  sea 
son  is  ideal. 

Since  the  Hopi  are  good  people  one  would  infer  that 
they  need  no  rulers.  One  might  live  among  the  Hopi 
for  some  time  and  not  wittingly  come  in  contact  with 
a  chief  or  a  policeman  or  any  evidence  of  laws,  but  the 
rulers  and  laws  are  there  nevertheless. 

The  voice  of  the  town  crier  awakens  one  to  the  fact 
that  here  is  the  striking  apparatus  of  some  sort  of  a 
social  clock.  It  will  be  found  that  there  is  an  organ- 
ization  of  which  the  crier  is  the  ultimate  utterance. 
Chiefs  are  there  in  abundance,  the  house  chief,  the 
kiva  chief,  the  war  chief,  the  speaker  chief  who  is  the 
crier;  chiefs  of  clans,  who  are  chiefs  of  the  fraterni 
ties:  all  these  are  members  of  the  council  that  rules 
the  pueblo.  The  council  meets  on  occasion  and  acts 
for  the  common  weal,  and  the  village  chief  publishes 
their  mandates  by  crier. 

In  this  most  democratic  organization  the  agents  of 


36  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

the  Government  who  wish  to  treat  with  the  Hopi,  not 
finding  a  responsible  head,  felt  forced  to  appoint  one. 
Thus  each  Hopi  pueblo  received  a  supreme  ruler,  who 
neither  deceived  himself  nor  the  people  as  to  the  power 
he  acquired  from  Washington,  which  was  nil.  The 
true  rulers  are  the  heads  of  the  clans,  and  by  their 
wise  advice  and  their  knowledge  of  the  traditional  un 
written  laws  everything  is  regulated  for  the  tractable 
Hopj^— feach  pueblo  acts  for  itself  and  knows  nothing 
|  and  cares  less  for  the  doings  of  the  other  pueblos,  so 
I  there  has  never  been  a  league  of  Hopi  tribes.  In  a 
\|ew  instances  there  was  a  temporary  unity  of  action, 
as  when  the  people  of  other  pueblos  destroyed  Awa- 
tobi,  an  event  related  circumstantially  in  the  tradition. 
(See  p.  210.)  Traces  of  this  independence  of  action 
abound  in  the  Southwest.  The  ancient  ruins  show 
that  the  clans  built  each  its  house  cluster  apart  from 
the  others  and  moved  when  it  liked.  The  present  vil 
lages  are  made  up  of  clans  and  fragments  of  clans, 
each  living  in  the  ward  where  it  settled  when  it  .joined 
the  others  in  the  old  time. 

These  clans  are  larger  families  of  blood  relations, 
who  trace  their  descent  from  the  mother  and  who  have 
a  general  family  name  or  totem,  as  Eagle,  Tobacco 
Plant,  Cloud,  etc.  Although  no  blood  relationship 
may  be  traceable  between  them,  no  youth  and  maid 
of  the  same  clan  may  marry,  and  this  seems  to  be  the 
first  law  of  the  clan.  The  working  of  the  strange  law 
of  mother-right  makes  the  children  of  no  clan  ro.la- 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  37 

tion  to  the  father.  Since  the  woman  owns  the  house 
and  the  children,  the  father  is  only  a  sojourner  in  the 
clan  of  his  wife. 

Another  law  of  the  greater  family  was  that  of  mu 
tual  help,  providing  for  the  weak,  infirm,  and  unpro 
tected  members.  From  this  grows  the  hospitality  of 
the  Indian,  and  nowhere  does  this  graceful  custom 
prevail  more  than  among  the  Hopi. 

As  if  in  recognition  of  the  interests  of  the  whole 
people  in  the  farming  lands  the  messengers  sent  out  to 
bear  plume-prayers  to  the  nature  gods  while  the  cere 
monies  are  in  progress  encircle  all  the  fields  of  the 
pueblo,  so  that  all  may  receive  the  blessings  of  rain. 
While  the  lands  are  spoken  of  as  belonging  to  the  vil 
lage,  they  are  known  to  have  been  immemorially  di 
vided  among  the  clans,  hence  at  Walpi  the  oldest  and 
otherwise  ranking  clans  have  the  best  land.  The  di 
vision  of  the  land  in  severalty  by  the  United  States 
government  some  years  ago  had  no  effect  on  the 
ancient  boundaries  and  no  one  but  the  surveyor  knows 
where  his  lines  ran. 

Every  once  in  a  while  the  Hopi  have  a  "raising," 
but  instead  of  the  kind  and  willing  neighbors  of  the 
"bee"  in  the  States,  here  the  workers  are  clan  rela 
tions.  Cooperation  or  communal  effort  goes  a  long 
way  toward  explaining  why  the  days  of  the  Pueblo 
dweller  are  long  in  the  land  and  the  Mormon  settlers 
in  the  Southwest  also  followed  this  primitive  law 
which  goes  into  effect  wherever  men  are  gathered  for 
the  common  weal.  - 


38  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

Laws  are  but  expressions  of  common  sense  formu 
lated  by  the  wisest  and  most  experienced.  The  Hopi 
must  have  good  laws,  for  though  their  laws  are  strong 
er  by  far  than  those  written  and  refined  by  civiliza 
tion,  the  people  observe  them  unconsciously  and  never 
feel  the  burden.  There  are  so  few  infractions  of  the 
law  that  it  is  difficult  to  say  what  the  various  punish 
ments  are.  The  taking  of  life  by  force  or  law  is  un 
known;  the  respect  of  mine  and  thine  is  the  rule 
among  the  Hopi,  and  so  on  through  the  temptations  of 
life  that  beset  mortals.  There  is  no  desire  to  place  the 
Hopi  on  a  pedestal  and  declare  them  perfect,  for  they 
are  not ;  but  in  many  ways  they  set  their  civilized 
brothers  an  example.  As  to  punishment,  it  is  prob- 
j  able  that  a  loss  of  standing  in  a  fraternity,  ostracism 
I  from  the  clan  or  pueblo,  and  ridicule  are  the  suasive 
^penalties. 

With  the  increased  influence  of  education  and  con 
tact  with  white  people  the  business  side  of  the  Hopi 
is  being  brought  out,  and  because  from  time  iiu- 
emorial  they  have  been  chief  among  the  traffickers 
the  primitive  commerce  of  the  Southwest,  they  have 
rapidly  assimilated  the  devices  of  modern  trade.  They 
have  their  own  native  merchants  and  are  gradually 
becoming  independent  of  the  trader.  The  latter  say 
they  would  rather  deal  with  six  Navaho  than  one  Hopi, 
because  the  Navaho  does  not  haggle,  while  the  Hopi, 
with  the  thrift  that  is  bringing  him  to  the  front,  is  de 
termined  to  get  the  benefit  of  a  bargain. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  39 

The  Pueblo  folk  retire  early  and  leave  the  safety  of 
the  village  to  the  patrol.  Some  one  is  always  on  guard 
about  the  pueblo,  whether  it  be  the  children  amusing 
themselves  on  the  rocks,  —  and  these  little  folks  have 
eyes  as  sharp  as  any,  —  or  the  grown  people  looking 
off  into  the  country  for  "signs,"  a  custom  which  has 
become  habitual  with  them.  The  night  patrol  is  a 
survival  of  the  times  when  the  whole  village  was  a 
committee  of  safety,  for  the  outside  foes  were  fierce 
and  treacherous. 

If  running  about  the  town  keeping  the  dogs  barking 
and  good  folks  awake  is  the  principal  office  of  the 
patrol,  then  it  is  eminently  successful  and  the  pueblos 
furnish  nocturnal  noises  on  the  scale  of  the  cities  of 
civilization.  The  tradition  of  the  coming  of  the  Flute 
clan  speaks  of  the  watchman  of  Walpi.  who  was  Al- 
osaka,  a  horned  being  alert  as  a  mountain  sheep.  The 
Flute  migrants  also  sent  out  "Mountain  Sheep"  to  as 
certain  whether  human  beings  lived  in  the  locality. 
During  some  of  the  ceremonies  there  are  vigilant 
patrols,  and  on  a  few  ceremonial  days  no  living  being 
is  allowed  to  come  into  the  pueblo  from  the  outside, 
formerly  under  pain  of  death  at  the  hands  of  the  fra 
ternity  guards.  It  is  thought  that  the  trouble  arising 
between  the  Spaniards  and  the  Hopi  on  that  first  visit 
to  Tusayan  in  1540  was  due  to  a  violation  of  the  cere 
monial  bar,  and  not  to  the  belligerent  habit  of  the  In 
dians. 

The  village  shepherds  have  an  easy,  though  very 


40  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

monotonous  occupation.  They  have  the  advantage  of 
other  Arizona  shepherds  because  their  charges  are 
brought  at  nightfall  into  secure  corrals  among  the 
rocks  below  the  town  and  do  not  require  care  till 
morning.  Frequently  one  sees  a  woman  and  a  child 
driving  the  herd  around,  in  what  seems  a  vain  search 
for  green  things  that  a  sheep  with  a  not  too  fastidious 
appetite  might  eat.  Formerly,  at  least,  the  office  of 
herder  was  bestowed  by  the  village  chief,  much  as  was 
once  the  case  with  the  village  swineherd  or  gooseherd 
of  Europe  in  olden  time. 

Perhaps  a  visitor  straying  about  a  Hopi  village  at  a 
time  when  there  are  no  ceremonies  in  progress  may 
find  a  quaint  street  market,  conducted  by  a  few 
women  squatted  on  the  ground,  with  their  wares 
spread  in  front  of  them.  Such  markets  are  only  a 
faint  reflection  of  those  which  have  been  held  in  Mex 
ico  from  time  immemorial;  but  it  is  interesting  to 
know  that  the  Hopi  have  such  an  institution,  because 
it  shows  a  step  in  political  economy  that  has  been 
rarely  noticed  among  the  Indians  in  the  United  States. 
The  little  barter  by  exchange  that  goes  on  here,  accom 
panied  with  the  jollity  of  the  Hopi  women,  has  in  it 
the  germ  of  commerce  with  its  world-embracing 
activities.  Here  it  is  found  also  that  woman  has  her 
place  as  the  beginner  and  promoter  of  buying  and  sell 
ing  as  she  has  in  the  inception  of  many  other  lines  of 
human  progress. 

Honi,  the  speaker-chief,  is  the  living  newspaper  of 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  41 

Walpi,  or  rather  he  is  a  vocal  bulletin-board.  Like 
the  reader  for  the  United  States  Senate,  his  voxee  is  of 
the  robust  kind,  and  for  this  qualification,  perhaps, 
he  was  selected  to  make  the  numerous  announcements 
from  the  housetops.  His  news  is  principally  of  a  re 
ligious  character,  such  as  the  beginning  and  progress 
of  the  many  ceremonies  at  the  pueblo,  but  there  is  a 
fair  sprinkling  of  secular  notices  of  interest  to  the 
community.  Honi,  however,  is  only  a  voice  crying  in 
the  wilderness  at  the  bidding  of  the  secret  council  or 
of  the  heads  of  the  brotherhoods  who  are  the  true 
rulers  of  the  pueblos,  because  they  have  the  destiny  of 
the  flock  in  their  hands.  He  holds,  however,  the  of 
fice  of  speaker-chief,  the  pay  of  which  is  not  highly 
remunerative,  but  the  duties  do  not  interfere  with  the 
pursuit  of  other  occupations,  since  his  announcements 
are  made  usually  when  the  people  have  gathered  in 
the  town  after  their  day's  labor  in  the  fields.  No 
doubt,  Honi  regards  himself  and  is  regarded  by  others 
as  an  important  functionary  who,  with  the  house  chief, 
has  the  privilege  of  frequenting  the  Mong-kiva  or 
council  chamber  of  the  pueblo.  The  town  crier's  an 
nouncements  attracted  the  notice  of  the  Spanish  con 
querors  in  the  early  days  as  they  have  that  of  modern 
travelers.  In  the  quaint  language  of  Castafieda, 
speaking  of  Zufii:  ''They  have  priests  who  preach 
to  them  whom  they  call  papas.  These  are  the  elders. 
They  go  up  on  the  highest  roof  of  the  village  and 
preach  to  the  village  from  there,  like  public  criers  in 


42  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

the  morning  while  the  sun  is  rising,  the  whole  village 
being  silent  and  sitting  in  the  galleries  to  listen.  They 
tell  them  how  to  live,  and  I  believe  that  they  give  cer 
tain  commandments  for  them  to  keep. ' ' 

It  must  be  admitted  that  Honi's  is  an  ancient  and 
honorable  office,  found  useful  by  civilized  communi 
ties  before  the  time  of  newspapers  and  surviving  yet, 
as  the  sereno  of  Spain. 

It  is  surprising,  by  the  way,  how  fast  news  flies  in 
Hopiland.  The  arrival  of  a  white  man  is  known  the 
whole  length  and  breadth  of  Tusayan  in  an  incred 
ibly  short  time.  A  fondness  for  small  talk,  together 
with  the  dearth,  of  news,  make  it  incumbent  upon 
every  Hopi,  when  anything  happens,  to  pass  the  word 
along. 

To  a  visitor  encamped  below  the  Walpi  mesa  the 
novelty  of  hearing  the  speaker-chief  for  the  first  time 
is  a  thing  long  to  be  remembered.  Out  of  the  dark 
ness  and  indescribable  silence  of  the  desert  comes  a 
voice,  and  such  a  voice !  From  the  heights  above  it 
seems  to  come  out  of  space  and  to  be  audible  for  an 
infinite  distance.  It  takes  the  form  of  a  chant,  long 
drawn  and  full  of  sonorous  quality.  Everyone  listens 
breathlessly  to  the  important  message,  and  when  the 
crier  finishes  after  the  third  repetition,  an  Indian  in 
forms  us  that  the  substance  of  the  announcement  was 
that  the  wire  which  "Washington"  had  promised  to 
send  had  come  and  that  in  two  days  the  villages  would 
go  out  to  build  fences. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  43 

That  Honi's  messages  are  worth  hearing  is  wit 
nessed  by  the  following  announcement  of  the  New 
Fire  ceremony.  Honi,  standing  on  the  housetop  at 
sun-up,  intones: 

All  people  awake,  open  your  eyes,  arise, 

Become  children  of  light,  vigorous,  active,  sprightly; 

Hasten,  Clouds,  from  the  four  world-quarters. 

Come,  Snow,  in  plenty,  that  water  may  abound  wrhen 
summer  appears. 

Come,  Ice,  and  cover  the  fields  that  after  planting, 
they  may  yield  abundantly. 

Let  all  hearts  be  glad. 

The  Wuwutchimtu  will  assemble  in  four  days. 

They  will  encircle  the  villages,  dancing  and  singing. 

Let  the  women  be  ready  to  pour  water  upon  them 

That  moisture  may  come  in  plenty  and  all  shall  re 
joice. 

This  is  a  good  example  of  the  poetry  of  the  Hopi 
which,  in  the  kachina  songs,  is  of  no  low  degree  of 
artistic  expression. 

The  Hopi  use  the  world  for  a  dial  and  the  sun  for 
the  clock-hand.  The  sun-priest  from  his  observatory  Y 
on  a  point  of  the  mesa  watches  the  luminary  as  care 
fully  as  any  astronomer.  He  determines  the  time  for 
the  beginning  of  each  ceremony  or  important  event 
in  the  life  of  the  pueblo,  such  as  com  planting,  by  the 
rising  or  setting  of  the  sun  behind  a  certain  peak  or 
notch  in  the  marvelous  mountain  profile  on  the  eastern 
and  western  horizons.  These  profiles  are  known  to 
him  as  we  know  the  figures  on  a  watch  face.  Along 


44  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

them  he  notes  the  march  of  the  seasons,  and  at  the 
proper  time  the  town-crier  chants  his  announcement 
from  the  house-tops. 

The  clear  air  of  Tusayan  renders  the  task  of  the 
sun-priest  easy ;  this  primitive  astronomer  has  the  best 
of  skies  for  observation.  By  day  the  San  Francisco 
peaks,  a  hundred  miles  away,  stand  clearly  silhouetted 
on  the  horizon ;  by  night  the  stars  are  so  brilliant  that 
one  can  distinguish  objects  by  their  light. 

The  Hopi  also  know  much  of  astronomy,  and  not 
only  do  they  have  names  for  the  planets  and  particu 
lar  stars,  but  are  familiar  with  many  constellations, 
the  Pleiades  especially  being  venerated,  as  among 
many  primitive  peoples.  The  rising  and  position  of 
the  Pleiades  determine  the  time  of  some  important 
ceremonies  when  the  "sweet  influences"  reign.  Any 
fixed  star  may  be  used  to  mark  off  a  period  of  time  by 
position  and  progress  in  the  heavens  as  the  sun  is  used 
by  day.  The  moon  determines  the  months,  but  there 
is  no  word  for  "year"  or  for  the  longer  periods  of 
time.  Days  are  marked  by  "sleeps,"  thus  today  is 
pui  or  "now";  the  days  of  the  week  are  two  sleeps, 
three  sleeps,  etc.;  tabiico  is  "yesterday." 

While  the  larger  periods  of  time  are  kept  with  ac 
curacy,  so  that  the  time  of  beginning  the  ceremonies 
varies  but  little  from  year  to  year,  the  Hopi  have  poor 
memories  for  dates.  No  one  knows  his  age,  and  many 
of  these  villages  seem  to  live  within  the  shifting  hori 
zons  of  yesterday  and  tomorrow.  The  priests,  how- 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  45 

ever,  keep  a  record  of  the  ceremonies  by  adding  to 
their  tiponi,  or  palladium  of  their  society,  a  feather 
for  each  celebration.  At  Zuili  a  record  of  the  death 
of  priests  of  the  war  society  is  kept  by  making 
scratches  on  the  face  of  a  large  rock  near  a  shrine,  and 
by  this  method  a  Hopi  woman  keeps  count  of  the  days 
from  the  child's  birth  to  the  natal  ceremony.  Ask  a 
Hopi  when  some  event  happened,  and  he  will  say, 
"Pai  he  sat  0,"  meaning  "some  time  ago,  when  my 
father  was  a  boy ' ' ;  stress  on  the  word  means  a  longer 
time,  and  if  the  event  was  long  beyond  the  memory  of 
man,  the  Indian  will  almost  shake  his  head  off  with 
emphasis. 

The  only  notched  time-stick  is  that  jealously  guard 
ed  by  the  sun  priest,  and  no  one  knows  just  how  he 
makes  his  calculations  from  it. 

As  for  dinner  time,  the  great  sun  and  "the  clock 
inside"  attend  to  that;  daiva  yamu,  dawa  nasluib,  and 
daiva  poki  stand  for  "sunrise,"  "noonday,"  and 
"sunset."  If  the  Hopi  makes  an  appointment  for  a 
special  hour,  he  points  to  where  the  sun  will  be  at  that 
time.  The  seasons  are  known  to  him  in  a  general  way 
as  the  time  of  the  cold  or  snow,  the  coming  back  of  the 
sun  (winter  solstice),  the  time  of  bean  or  corn  plant 
ing,  the  time  of  green  corn,  the  time  of  harvest,  etc., 
but  there  is  a  calendar  marked  by  the  ceremonies  held 
during  each  month. 

Perhaps  these  children  of  the  sun  are  happier  in  not 
being  slaves  of  the  second  as  we  have  become.  Our 


46  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

watches,  which  they  call  daiva,  "the  sun,"  have  not 
bound  them  to  the  wheel  by  whose  turning  we  seem  tc 
advance.  They  are  satisfied  with  the  grander  proces 
sion  of  the  heavenly  bodies,  and  their  days  fade  into 
happy  forgetfulness. 

An  experience  of  several  years  ago  may  here  be  re 
lated  in  order  to  show  how  the  clan  name  of  a  Hopi 
is  a  veritable  part  of  himself  and  also  links  him  to  hi*- 
clan  and  the  most  intimate  religious  and  secular  life  of 
the  pueblo. 

There  was  a  jolly  crowd  of  Hopi  under  the  denst 
shade  of  a  cottonwood  on  the  Little  Colorado  River 
one  hot  day  in  July.  The  mound  of  earth,  strewn 
with  chips  of  flint  and  potsherds  like  a  buried  city  on 
the  Euphrates,  had  yielded  its  secrets,  and  the  houst 
walls  of  the  ancient  town  of  Homolobi  resembled  a 
huge  honeycomb  on  the  bluff. 

The  Hopi,  who  had  worked  like  Trojans  in  laying 
bare  the  habitations  of  their  presumptive  ancestors, 
were  now  assembled  to  receive  their  wages  in  silver 
dollars,  which  they  expressively  call  "little  white 
cakes."  Around  were  scattered  the  various  belong 
ings  of  an  Indian  camp,  among  which  tin  cans  were 
prominent;  a  wind-break  had  been  constructed  of  cot 
tonwood  boughs;  from  the  tree  hung  the  shells  of 
turtles  caught  in  the  river ;  a  quantity  of  wild  tobacco 
was  spread  out  to  dry  in  the  sun,  and  several  crop- 
eared  burros  hobbling  about  on  three  legs  were  enjoy 
ing  an  unusually  luxuriant  pasture  of  sagebrush. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  47 

' '  Paying  off ' '  is  surrounded  with  attractions  for  all 
sorts  and  conditions  of  men.  The  Hopi  seemed  like 
a  lot  of  children  anticipating  a  holiday,  as  they  sat  in 
a  circle  around  Dr.  Fewkes,  who  was  paymaster.  This 
was  their  first  experience,  perhaps,  with  Government 
"red  tape/'  of  whose  intricacies  they  must  have  had 
but  the  faintest  idea.  There  are  times  when  blissful 
ignorance  is  to  be  envied. 

The  "  sub- vouchers ' '  were  filled  out  with  the  time 
of  service  and  the  amount  to  be  paid,  and  as  the  doc 
tor's  clerk  called  out  the  names,  the  boys  came  for 
ward  to  sign.  An  Indian  sign  his  name !  Curiously^ 
enough,  every  Hopi  from  the  least  to  the  greatest  can 
sign  his  name,  and  he  does  not  have  to  resort  to  the 
' '  X-mark ' '  of  our  boasted  civilization. 

Perhaps  it  would  be  better  to  say  * ;  draws  his  name, ' ' 
for  when  the  first  Indian  grasped  the  pen  in  the  most 
unfamiliar  way  imaginable,  he  drew  the  picture  of  a 
rabbit,  the  next  drew  a  tobacco  plant,  the  third  a  liz 
ard,  and  so  on,  until  the  strangest  collection  of  sig 
natures  that  ever  graced  a  Government  voucher-book 
was  completed. 

It  must  be  explained  that  each  Hopi  has  an  every 
day  name  which  his  fond  relatives  devised  for  him 
during  infancy,  and  a  clan  name,  which  shows  his 
blood  relationship  or  family.  Nowhere,  even  in  these 
days  of  ancestor  hunting,  is  more  importance  given  to 
family  than  in  Hopiland.  If  you  ask,  "Who  is  this 
man?"  the  answer  may  be,  for  instance,  "Kopeli," 


48  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

his  individual  name.  "But  what  is  he  in  Walpi?" 
"He  is  a  chua,"  that  is,  he  belongs  to  the  importan: 
Snake  clan  and  his  totem  signature  is  a  crawling  rep 
tile. 

It  affords  great  amusement  to  the  Hopi  when  a  per 
son,  not  acquainted  with  their  customs,  asks  a  man  his 
name;  it  is  also  very  embarrassing  to  the  man  asked, 
unless  there  is  a  third  party  at  hand  to  volunteer  tho 
service,  because  no  Hopi  can  be  prevailed  on  to  speak 
his  own  name  for  fear  of  the  bad  consequences  fol 
lowing  ' i  giving  himself  away. ' ' 


Ill 

FOOD  AND  REARING 

Indian  legend  tells  of  a  time  when  all  was  water; 
then  land  was  made ;  for  a  long  time  the  earth  was  too 
wet  for  human  beings  and  at  last  the  earth  was  dried 
out  by  a  mighty  fire.  All  these  are  pretty  stories  for 
those  who  are  looking  for  deluge  legends  and  the  ef 
fects  of  blazing  comets,  but  if  the  Indian  account  is 
true,  the  drying  process  was  carried  entirely  too  far 
in  the  Southwest.  Water !  water !  water !  The  word 
gains  a  new  significance  in  this  arid  region.  There  is 
a  rippling,  cooling,  refreshing  note  in  it,  a  soothing  of 
parched  lips  and  a  guaranty  against  death  from  thirst. 
So,  all  conversation  among  the  people  is  replete  with 
references  to  this  mainstay  of  life,  and  one  comes,  like 
them,  to  discuss  the  water  question  with  an  earnest 
regard  for  its  problems. 

Wherever  there  is  water,  almost  always  will  there 
be  found  ancient  ruins.  In  modern  times  the  wind 
mill  of  the  settler  often  stands  by  the  spring  which 
quenched  the  thirst  of  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  a 
now  crumbling  pueblo.  The  blessings  which  were  in 
voked  in  Biblical  times  upon  the  man  who  "digged  a 


50  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

well"  apply  also  in  this  semi-desert,  for  Syria  and 
Arizona  do  not  differ  greatly  in  climate.  The  Bedouin 
with  Ms  horses  and  camels  would  not  be  .out  of  place 
on  the  sand  wastes  of  our  Sahara ;  nor  were  the  Span 
ish  conquerors  on  unfamiliar  ground  when  they  ex 
changed  the  dusty  plains  and  naked  sierras  of  their 
native  land  for  those  of  the  New  World. 

The  traveler  in  Spain,  northern  Africa,  or  Asia 
Minor  is  impressed  with  the  similarity  between  these 
countries  and  our  Southwest,  so  that  the  name  of  New 
Spain,  early  applied  by  the  Spaniards  to  all  of  Mex 
ico,  seems  very  appropriate.  Like  these  countries,  too, 
our  Southwest  is  a  land  of  thirst ;  the  dry  air  and  fer 
vent  sun  parch  the  skin  and  devour  every  trace  of 
moisture.  ( One  feels  as  though  he  were  placed  under 
a  bell  glass  exhausted  of  air  undergoing  the  shriveling 
process  of  the  apple  in  the  experiment.) 

So,  before  taking  a  journey,  one  inquires  not  so 
much  of  the  roads  and  distances,  but  whether  water 
may  be  found,  i'or  it  is  often  necessary  to  submit  to 
that  most  unpleasant  of  contingencies,  a  ' '  dry  camp. ' ' 
Many  parts  of  Arizona  and  New  Mexico  cannot  easily 
be  visited  except  in  favorable  seasons,  because  one  is 
told,  "it's  a  hundred  miles  to  water."  The  Hopi 
often  provide  for  the  long  journeys  across  waterless 
country  by  hiding  water  at  points  along  the  route. 
This  wise  precaution,  which  was  noticed  by  the  Span 
ish  explorers  of  the  sixteenth  century,  consists  of 
burying  sealed  water-jars  in  the  sand,  their  situation 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  51 

being  indicated  by  ' '  signs. ' '  Far  from  the  ancient  or 
modern  habitation  these  jars,  uncovered  by  the  wind, 
are  often  discovered  by  riders  on  the  cattle  ranges. 

Not  only  must  the  dusty  explorer  * '  haul  water, ' '  for 
even  the  railroads  across  the  semi-desert  are  provided 
with  tank  trains  for  water  service,  and  the  water  tanks 
of  the  huge  locomotive  tenders  of  all  trains  are  of  un 
usual  capacity. 

Far  out  on  the  sandy,  sage-brush  plains  are  fre 
quently  seen  small  cairns  of  stones,  called  by  the 
knowing  ones  * 4  Indian  water  signs, ' '  pointing  out  the 
direction  of  water,  but  the  more  common  signs  are  the 
trails  made  by 'cattle  on  which  a  myriad  of  tracks  in 
the  dust  point  to  water,  miles  away  perhaps,  and 
oftentimes,  when  the  tracks  are  not  fresh,  leading  to  a 
dried-up  pool,  surrounded  by  carcasses  or  bleaching 
bones. 

The  Navaho  herdsman  or  herdswoman  is  a  person 
with  great  responsibility,  for  the  sheep  and  ponies 
must  have  water  at  least  every  three  or  four  days. 
When  a  well-defined  thunder-storm  passes  within 
twenty  or  thirty  miles  of  his  camp  he  starts  for  the 
path  of  its  influence,  knowing  that  there  will  be  pools 
of  water  and  quick-springing  herbs  and  grass.  This 
chasing  a  thunder-storm  is  novel  —  and  much  more 
satisfactory  than  chasing  a  rainbow.  Even  the  wild 
cattle  scent  the  water  and  make  for  it,  running  like 
race-horses. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  animals  of  the  desert  have 


52  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

of  necessity  become  used  to  doing  without  water.  So 
far  as  one  can  determine,  the  rats,  mice,  squirrels, 
badgers,  coyotes,  prairie-dogs,  skunks,  and  other  den- 
kens  of  the  sand-wastes  so  rarely  get  a  good  drink  of 
water  that  they  seem  to  have  outgrown  the  need  of  it. 
Cattle  and  horses  have  also  developed  such  powers  of 
abstinence  as  might  put  a  camel  to  shame.  There  is  a 
belief  in  the  Western  country  that  at  least  one  of  the 
burrows  of  a  prairie-dog  town  penetrates  to  water, 
but  whether  this  be  true  or  not,  judging  from  some  of 
the  locations  of  these  queer  animal  villages  the  tribe 
of  gophers  must  contain  adepts  in  abysmal  engineer 
ing. 

One  does  not  live  long  in  the  wilds  of  Arizona  with 
out  becoming  weatherwise  and,  perhaps,  skilled  in 
signs  and  trails  like  a  frontiersman.  The  country  is 
so  open  that  the  weather  for  a  hundred  miles  or  more 
can  be  taken  in  at  a  glance  and  the  march  of  several 
storms  observed  at  once,  even  though  the  sound  of 
wind  and  thunder  be  far  out  of  hearing.  At  Flag- 
staff,  for  instance,  it  is  easy  to  tell  when  the  Hopi  are 
rejoicing  in  a  rain,  although  it  is  more  than  a  hundred 
miles  away. 

In  a  country  with  so  little  rainfall  as  Tusayan  and 
in  which  the  soil  consists  largely  of  sand  with  under 
lying  porous  rocks,  springs  are  few  and  their  flow 
scantjr.  The  rivers,  also,  during  most  of  the  year, 
flow  far  beneath  their  sandy  beds,  which  only  once  in 
a  while  are  torn  by  raging  torrents.  This  is  one  of 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  53 

the  many  novelties  of  a  country  that  probably  offers 
more  attractions  than  any  land  on  earth. 

Around  the  springs  the  life  of  the  Hopi  comes  to  a 
focus,  for  here,  at  all  hours  of  the  day,  women  and: 
girls  may  be  seen  filling  their  canteens,  getting  them 
well  adjusted  in  the  blankets  on  their  backs  for  the 
toilsome  climb  up  the  trail.  A  feeling  of  admiration 
tinged  with  pity  arises  for  these  sturdy  little  women 
who  in  the  blanket  tied  across  the  forehead  literally 
by  the  sweat  of  their  brows  carry  half  a  hundred 
weight  of  water  up  a  height  of  nearly  half  a  thousand 
feet.  Mang  i  uh,  " tired?"  one  asks  them.  Okiowa 
mang  i  uh,  ' '  Yes,  alas,  very  tired ! ' '  they  answer,  these 
slaves  of  the  spring. 

At  the  edge  of  the  water  in  the  spring,  where  noth-  / 
ing  can  disturb  them,  are  green-painted  sticks  with, 
dangling  feathers.  These  are  offerings  to  the  gods 
who  rule  the  water  element.  At  none  of  the  frequent 
ceremonies  of  the  Hopi  are  the  springs  forgotten,  for 
a  messenger  carries  prayer-sticks  to  them  and  places 
them  in  the  water.  In  former  times  offerings  of  pot 
tery  and  other  objects  were  thrown  into  springs  by 
devout  worshippers. 

Around  the  springs  are  gardens  in  which  onions 
and  other  " garden  sauce"  are  grown.  When  it  is 
possible,  a  little  rill  is  led  from  the  spring  into  the 
gardens.  The  growing  greens  lend  much  to  the  drear 
surroundings  of  the  springs,  but  the  plants  must  be 


enclosed  by  a  stone  wall  to  keep  away  marauding 
burros  and  goats. 


54  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

At  least  one  spring  at  each  pueblo  is  dug  out  and 
enlarged,  forming  a  pool  at  the  bottom  of  an  excava 
tion  ten  feet  deep  and  thirty  in  diameter,  with  a 
graded  way  leading  down  to  the  water.  These  springs 
are  convenient  for  watering  the  thirsty  stock,  but  they 
are  especially  used  in  the  ceremonies.  During  the 
Flute  Dance,  for  example,  they  form  the  theater  of 
an  elaborate  ceremony  in  which  the  priests  wade  in  the 
spring  and  blow  their  flutes  in  the  water. 

All  the  springs  have  been  given  descriptive  names. 
At  Walpi,  there  are  Dawapa,  "sun  spring";  Ishba, 
"wolf  spring";  Canelba,  "sheep  spring";  Kokiungba, 
1 '  spider  spring" ;  Wipoba,  ' '  rush  spring" ;  Kachinapa, 
"kachina  spring,"  and  a  number  of  others,  around 
which  cluster  many  associations  dear  to  the  good  peo 
ple  of  the  East  Mesa.  Like  the  Hopi,  every  other  hu 
man  being  who  fares  in  the  dry  Southwest  uncon 
sciously  becomes  a  devotee  of  water  worship  and  event 
ually  finds  himself  in  the  grip  of  the  powers  of  Nature 
whom  the  Indians  beseech  for  the  fertilizing  rain. 

Springs  are  often  uncertain  quantities  in  this  re 
gion.  Earthquakes  have  been  known  to  swallow  up 
springs  in  one  place  and  to  cause  them  to  burst  out  at 
another  far  away.  One  can  readily  imagine  what  a 
terrible  calamity  such  a  phenomenon  can  be  in  so  dry 
a  country,  for  the  only  thing  the  people  can  do  under 
such  circumstances  is  to  move  and  to  move  quickly. 
It  seems  probable  that  some  of  the  many  ancient  In 
dian  settlements  that  make  the  Southwest  a  ruin- 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  55 

strewn  region  have  been  caused  by  just  such  fickle 
ness  in  the  water  supply. 

When  modern  engineering  comes  to  the  aid  of  the 
Hopi  in  storing  the  occasional  vast  rushes  of  water 
for  use  throughout  the  year,  a  new  era  will  dawn  for 
the  Peaceful  People.  They  may  then  become  prosper 
ous  farmers  and  gradually  forget  the  days  when  they 
invoked  the  powers  of  nature  with  strange  charms 
and  ceremonies. 

If  the  Hopi  know  well  the  springs,  they  are  not  less 
perfect  in  knowledge  of  plants  that  are  useful  to 
them.  One  day  Kopeli,  the  former  Snake  chief,  un 
dertook  to  teach  his  pupil,  Kuktaimu,  the  lore  of  the 
plants  growing  near  the  East  Mesa.  They  set  out  for 
a  flooded  cornfield  near  the  wash,  and  long  before  they 
reached  it,  they  could  hear  the  watchers  emitting 
blood-curdling  yells  to  scare  away  the  hated  angwisli- 
cy,  crows,  that  from  time  to  time  made  a  dash  for  the 
toothsome  ears. 

It  goes  without  saying  that  the  day  was  beautiful, 
for  in  August  thunder-cloud  masses  often  fill  the  sky 
with  graceful  forms,  tinted  beneath  by  a  rosy  glow  re 
flected  from  the  surface  of  the  red  plains.  The  rain 
had  started  the  vegetation  anew  and  the  deep  green 
cornfields  showed  its  benign  influences. 

Kopeli  was  communicative,  but  Kuktaimu,  although 
having  been  blessed  by  Salako  with  a  Hopi  name,  was 
weak  in  the  subtleties  of  Hopi  speech  and  missed 
many  points  to  which,  out  of  politeness,  he  responded 


56  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

Owi,  "yes."  Still,  the  queer-sounding  names  of  the 
plants  and  their  uses  given  by  Kopeli  were  duly  put 
down  on  paper,  for  which  the  Hopi  have  a  word  which 
literally  means  corn-husk.  On  their  journey  around 
the  cornfields  they  met  various  groups  of  watchers, 
some  reclining  beneath  the  sloping  farm  shelters  of 
cottonwood  boughs,  some  chatting  together  or  gnaw 
ing  ears  of  corn  roasted  in  a  little  fire.  Everyone  re 
quested  matches  and  willingly  assisted  in  conferences 
over  plants  of  which  Kopeli  might  be  doubtful.  Boys 
with  their  bows  and  arrows  tried  for  shots  at  crows, 
and  little  girls  minded  the  babies.  Life  in  the  fields 
is  full  of  enjoyment  to  the  Hopi,  and  the  children 
especially  delight  to  spend  a  day  picnicking  amidst 
the  rustling  corn-leaves. 

The  plants  having  been  hunted  out  in  the  cornfields, 
Kopeli  and  Kuktaimu  sought  higher  ground  among 
the  rocks  below  the  mesa,  where  different  species  of 
plants  grow.  At  the  foot  of  the  gray  rocks  are  found 
many  plants  of  great  medicinal  and  ceremonial  value 
to  the  Hopi,  according  to  the  Snake  priest,  who  grew 
enthusiastic  over  a  small  silvery  specimen  with  pun 
gent  odor.  "Very  good  medicine,"  he  said.  At  this 
juncture,  when  the  plant  had  been  carefully  placed 
in  the  collecting  papers,  Kopeli  made  a  characteristic 
gesture  by  rapidly  sliding  one  of  his  palms  over  the 
other  and  said  pasha,  "all."  The  nearness  of  the 
evening  meal  must  have  been  the  influence  that  caused 
Kopeli  to  say  that  the  flora  of  Tusayan  had  been  ex- 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  57 

hausted  in  a  single  day's  search,  for  subsequent  jour 
neys  about  the  mesas  brought  to  light  many  other 
plants  that  have  place  in  Hopi  botany. 

It  is  surprising  to  find  such  a  general  knowledge  of 
the  plants  of  their  country  as  is  met  with  among  the 
Hopi.  No  doubt  this  wonder  arises  among  those  who 
live  the  artificial  life  of  the  cities.  The  Hopi  is  a  true 
child  of  the  desert  and  near  to  the  desert 's  heart.  His 
surroundings  do  not  furnish  clear  streams,  grassy 
meadows,  and  massy  trees ;  there  is  much  that  is  stern 
and  barren  at  first  glance,  and  there  is  a  meagerness 
except  in  vast  outlooks  and  brilliant  coloring.  Here 
Nature  is  stripped  and  all  her  outlines  are  revealed ; 
the  rocks,  plains  and  mountains  stand  out  boldly  in  the 
clear  air.  Still,  in  all  this  barrenness  there  is  abun 
dance  of  animal  and  vegetal  life  which  has  adapted 
itself  to  the  semi-desert,  and  if  one  becomes  for  the 
time  a  Hopi,  he  may  find  in  odd  nooks  and  corners 
many  things  delightful  both  to  the  eyes  and  the  under 
standing. 

There  are  few  Hopi  who  do  not  know  the  herbs  and 
simples,  and  some  are  familiar  with  the  plants  that 
grow,  in  the  mountains  and  canyons,  hundreds  of  miles 
from  their  villages.  Even  the  children  know  many  of 
the  herbs,  and  more  than  once  I  have  successfully 
asked  them  for  their  Indian  names.  This  is  not  strange, 
because  such  things  are  a  part  of  their  education  and 
in  this  way  they  are  in  advance  of  the  majority  of 
their  civilized  brothers.  After  a  while  the  idea  im- 


58  MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND 

presses  one  that  the  Hopi  depend  on  the  crops  of  Na 
ture  's  sowing  as  much  as  on  the  products  of  their 
well-tilled  fields.  Many  a  time,  as  the  legends  tell, 
the  people  were  kept  from  famine  by  the  plants  of  the 
desert,  which,  good  or  bad  seasons  alike,  thrust  their 
gray-green  shoots  through  the  dry  sands,  a  reminder 
of  the  basis  of  all  flesh. 

Perhaps  all  the  Hopi  believe  that  the  wild  plants 
are  most  valuable  for  healing  and  religious  purposes, 
for  the  plants  they  use  in  medicine  would  stock  a 
primitive  drug  store.  Bunches  of  dried  herbs,  roots, 
etc.,  hang  from  the  ceiling  beams  of  every  house,  re 
minding  one  of  the  mysterious  bundles  of  "yarbs"  in 
a  negro  cabin,  and,  as  occasion  requires,  are  made  into 
teas  and  powders  for  all  sorts  of  ills. 

Hopi  doctors  have  a  theory  and  practice  of  medi 
cine,  just  as  have  their  more  learned  white  brethren. 
Without  the  remotest  acquaintance  with  the  schools 
dividing  the  opinions  of  our  medicine-afflicted  race, 
they  unconsciously  follow  a  number  of  the  famous 
teachings.  So,  if  a  patient  has  a  prickling  sensation 
in  the  throat  a,  tea  made  from  the  thistle  mil  perform 
a  cure,  as  "like  cures  like."  The  hairy  seeds  of  the 
clematis  will  make  the  hair  grow,  and  the  fruit  of  a 
prolific  creeping  plant  should  be  placed  in  the  water 
melon  hills  to  insure  many  melons.  The  leaves  of  a 
plant  named  for  the  bat  are  placed  on  the  head  of  a 
restless  child  to  induce  it  to  sleep  in  the  daytime,  be 
cause  that  is  the  time  the  slothful  bat  sleeps.  It  is 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  59 

not  often  that  Hopi  children  require  an  application 
of  bat-plant  medicine,  but  even  the  best  of  children 
get  fractious  sometimes. 

Many  are  the  strange  uses  of  plants  by  the  Hopi, 
and  much  curious  lore  has  gathered  about  them.  Some 
of  the  plants  are  named  for  the  animals  and  insects 
which  live  upon  them,  such  as  "the  caterpillar,  his 
corn, "  "  the  mole,  his  corn ' ' ;  while  some,  from  fancied 
resemblances,  are  called  "rat's  ear,"  "bat  plant/' 
' '  rattle  plant, ' '  etc.  Two  plants  growing  in  company 
are  believed  to  be  related  and  one  is  spoken  of  as  the 
child  of  the  other.  Plants  are  also  known  as  male 
and  female,  and  each  belongs  to  its  special  point  of  the 
compass.  Many  are  used  in  the  religious  ceremonies; 
those  beloved  by  the  gods  appear  on  the  prayer-sticks 
offered  to  beseech  the  kind  offices  of  the  nature  deities. 

Strange  as  it  may  seem,  the  Hopi  have  medicine 
women  as  well  as  medicine  men.  The  best  known  of 
these  is  Saalako,  the  mother  of  the  Snake  priest.  She 
brews  the  dark  medicine  for  the  Snake  dance  and 
guards  the  secret  of  the  antidote  for  snake  bites.  The 
writer  once  met  at  the  place  called  "Broad  House"  a 
Navaho  medicine  man.  He  was  a  wrinkled,  grizzled 
specimen  of  humanity  mounted  on  a  burro  and  was 
hunting  for  herbs,  as  was  seen  by  a  glance  into  the 
pouch  which  he  wore  by  his  side.  A  little  tobacco  in 
duced  him  to  dismount  and  spread  out  his  store  of 
herbs.  When  shown  the  winter's  collection  of  plants, 
he  became  much  interested,  no  doubt  believing  that 


60  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

he  had  found  a  fellow  practitioner.  He  requested 
samples  of  several  of  the  plants,  and  when  they  were 
given  him,  stored  them  away  in  his  pouch  with  every 
evidence  of  satisfaction. 

The  Hopi  priests  are  also  very  glad  to  receive  any 
herb  coming  from  far  off,  especially  from  the  sea- 
coast,  "the  land  of  the  far  water,"  as  they  call  it. 
They  treasure  such  carefully  and  mix  it  with  sacred 
smoking  tobacco  or  introduce  it  into  the  "charm 
liquid"  which  is  used  in  every  ceremony  to  mix  the 
paint  for  the  prayer-sticks  and  to  sprinkle  during 
their  strange  rites. 

An  American  farmer  might  be  at  a  loss  to  recognize 
a  Hopi  cornfield  when  he  saw  one.  In  the  usually 
dry  stream  beds  or  "washes"  he  would  see  low  clumps 
of  vegetation,  arranged  with  some  regularity  over  the 
sand.  This  is  the  Hopi  cornfield,  so  planted  in  order 
to  get  the  benefit  of  rains  which,  falling  higher  up, 
may  fill  the  washes,  for  the  summer  thunder-storms 
are  very  erratic  in  their  favors. 

The  Hopi  farmer  sets  out  to  plant,  armed  only  with 
a  dibble  which  serves  as  plow,  hoe,  and  cultivator 
combined.  Arriving  at  the  waste  of  sand  which  is  his 
unpromising  seed-field,  he  sits  down  on  the  ground, 
digs  a  hole,  and  puts  in  perhaps  twenty  grains,  cover 
ing  them  with  the  hands.  Whether  he  has  any  rule  like 

One  for  the  cutworm, 

One  for  the  crow, 
One  for  luck, 

And  three  for  to  grow, 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  61 

is  doubtful,  but  in  the  years  when  cutworms  are  likely 
to  be  plentiful  he  plants  more  corn  to  the  hill. 

One  hill  finished,  he  gets  up,  moves  away  about  ten 
feet,  sits  down,  and  goes  through  the  same  process. 
He  never  thins  the  corn,  but  leaves  the  numerous 
stalks  close  together  for  shade  and  protection  from  the 
winds.  !  His  care  of  the  field  consists  merely  in  hoeing 
the  weeds  and  keeping  a  watch  on  the  crows,  which  he  \ 
frightens  away  by  demoniac  shouts.  His  scarecrows 
are  also  wonders  of  ingenuity,  and  many  a  time  one 
takes  them  for  watchful  Indians) 

When  the  corn  is  fit  for  roasting  ears  the  Hopi  get 
fat  and  there  is  feasting  from  morn  till  night.  Tall 
columns  of  smoke  arise  from  the  roasting  pits  in  the 
fields.  These  large  pits  are  dug  in  the  sand,  heated 
with  burning  brush,  filled  with  roasting  ears,  and 
closed  up  tightly  for  a  day.  The  opening  of  a  pit  is 
usually  the  occasion  of  frolicking  and  feasting,  where 
laughter  and  song  prevail.  Some  of  the  corn  is  con 
sumed  at  once  in  making  puddings  and  other  dishes 
of  which  the  Hopi  prepare  many,  and  what  remains  is 
dried  on  the  cob  and  hung  in  bunches  in  the  houses 
for  the  winter. 

The  ears  of  the  Indian  corn  are  close  to  the  ground 
and  are  hidden  by  the  blades,  which  touch  the  sand. 
The  blades  are  usually  tattered  and  blown  away  by  the 
wind,  so  that  by  the  time  the  corn  is  ripe,  the  fodder 
is  not  of  much  value.  The  ripe  corn  is  gathered  and 
laboriously  carried  by  back-loads  up  the  steep  mesa  to 


62  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

the  houses,  where  it  is  stored  away  in  the  corn  cham 
ber.  Here  the  ears  are  piled  up  in  symmetrical  walls, 
separate  from  the  last  year's  crop,  which  may  now  be 
used,  as  the  Hopi,  taught  by  famine,  keep  one  year's 
harvest  in  reserve.  Once  in  a  while,  the  women  brin^r 
out  the  old  corn,  spread  it  on  the  roof  to  sun,  and  care 
fully  brush  off  ea,ch  ear  before  returning  it  to  the 
granary,  for  in  this  dry  country,  though  corn  never 
molds,  insect  pests  are  numerous. 

Among  the  superstitions  connected  with  corn  the 
Hopi  believe  that  the  cobs  of  the  seed  corn  must  no*, 
be  burned  until  rain  has  fallen  on  the  crop  for  fear  OJT 
keeping  away  or  "drying  up"  the  rains. 

No  cereal  in  the  world  is  so  beautiful  as  Hopi  corn 
The  grains,  though  small,  are  full  and  highly  pol 
ished  ;  the  ears  are  white,  yellow,  red  of  several  shades, 
a  lovely  rose  madder,  blue,  a  very  dark  blue  or  purple 
which  the  Hopi  call  black,  and  mottled.  A  tray  of 
shelled  corn  of  various  colors  looks  like  a  mosaic. 

In  the  division  of  labor,  the  planting,  care  of  the 
com  in  the  fields  and  the  harvesting  belong  to  the 
men.  When  the  brilliant  ears  are  garnered,  then  the 
women's  work  begins.  No  other  feature  of  the  Hopi 
household  is  so  interesting  as  the  row  of  three  or  more 
slabs  pla.ced  slantwise  in  stone-lined  troughs  sunk  in 
the  floor;  these  are  their  mills.  They  are  of  graded 
fineness,  and  this  is  also  true  of  the  oblong  hand 
stones,  or  manos,  which  are  rubbed  upon  them  with  an 
up  and  down  motion  as  in  using  a  washboard.  Some- 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  63 

times  three  women  work  at  the  mills ;  the  first  woman 
grinds  the  corn  into  coarse  meal  on  the  coarse  stone 
and  passes  her  product  over  to  the  second,  who  grinds 
it  still  finer,  and  the  third  finishes  it  on  the  last  stone ; 
sometimes  one  woman  alone  carries  the  meal  through 
the  successive  stages,  but  it  is  a  poor  household  that 
cannot  furnish  two  grinders.  The  skill  with  which 
the  woman  spreads  the  meal  over  the  grinding  slab  by 
a  flirt  of  the  hand  as  the  mano  is  brought  up  for  the 
return  stroke  is  truly  remarkable,  and  the  rhythmic 
precision  of  all  the  motions  suggests  a  machine.  The* 
weird  song  sung  by  the  grinders  and  the  rumble  of  the 
mill  are  characteristic  sounds  of  the  Hopi  pueblos,  and 
as  the  women  grinders  powder  their  perspiring  faces 
with  meal  while  they  work,  they  look  well  the  part  of 
millers.  Little  girls  are  early  taught  to  grind,  and 
they  often  may  be  prevailed  upon  to  display  their  ac 
complishment  before  visitors. 

The  finely  ground  meal  is  piled  and  patted  into 
conical  heaps  on  the  flat  basket  trays,  making  quite  an 
exhibition  of  which  the  Hopi  women  are  very  proud, 
much  meal  indicating  diligence  as  well  as  a  bountiful 
supply  of  the  staff  of  life.  Grinding  is  back-breaking 
work,  and  one  humanely  wishes  that  the  Hopi  women, 
and  especially  the  immature  girls,  could  be  relieved 
of  this  too  heavy  task. 

While  corn-meal  enters  into  all  Hopi  cooking  as 
the  chief  ingredient,  most  of  it  is  made  into  "  paper- 
bread,"  called  piki,  resembling  more  than  anything 


64  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

else  the  material  of  a  hornet's  nest.  This  bread  is 
made  from  batter,  colored  gray  with  wood  ashes,  dex 
terously  spread  very  thinly  with,  the  hand  over  & 
heated  slab  of  stone.  Piki  bakes  quickly,  coming  free 
from  the  slab  and  is  directly  folded  up  into  conven 
ient  compass  and  so  crisp  is  it  that  it  crackles  like 
paper.  Sometimes  it  is  tinted  with  attractive  colors 
for  festal  occasions,  such  as  the  Kachina  ceremonies. 

Before  a  dance  the  women  busily  prepare  food  and 
the  girls  go  about  speechless,  with  mouths  full  of  meal, 
" chewing  yeast"  for  the  corn  pudding.  This  and 
other  ins  and  outs  of  the  kitchen  make  the  knowing 
traveler  rather  shy  of  the  otherwise  attractive-looking 
Hopi  food. 

Surely  corn  is  the  ' '  mother ' '  of  the  Hopi.  All  the 
powers  of  nature  are  invoked  to  grant  a  good  crop 
by  giving  rain  and  fertility,  and  the  desire  for  corn 
is  the  central  motive  of  the  numerous  ceremonies  of 
the  villagers  of  Tusayan.  If  the  prayers  of  the  Hopi 
could  be  formulated  like  the  "Om  mane  padme  hum" 
of  the  Hindus,  it  would  be  in  the  smaller  compass  of 
these  words,  ' '  Grant  us  corn ! ' '  Nor  are  these  simple 
villagers  ungrateful  for  such  blessings.  Kopeli  used 
to  stand  looking  over  his  thriving  cornfield  and  say 
with  fervor,  ' '  K wa,  kwi,  Kwa  kwi, ' '  i  i  thanks,  thanks, ' ' 
and  it  was  evident  that  the  utterance  was  made  with 
true  thankfulness  and  a  spirit  of  devotion. 

It  is  difficult  to  imagine  the  ancient  people  with 
out  corn ;  but  very  long  ago,  as  the  legends  tell,  they 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  65 

did  not  know  this  cereal.  Certain  it  is  they  were 
not  then  pueblo  dwellers  and  had  not  spread  far  in  the 
Southwest.  They  lived  in  tloe  plaees  where  there  was 
game,  and  for  the  same  reason  that  the  important  food 
animals  lived  in  such  places,  —  the  presence  of  vegeta 
tion  that  would  sustain  life. 

Their  life  was  along  the  foot  hills  of  well- watered 
and  timbered  mountains  rising  from  plains,  where 
with  the  flesh  of  game  and  seeds  and  roots  of  plants 
they  could  supply  their  semi-savage  wants.  Long 
perhaps  they  roved  thus  as  hunters  until  they  drifted 
to  the  land  of  promise  —  the  semi-desert  where  agri 
culture  of  grain  plants  was  born  and  there  they  re 
ceived  "mother  corn."  Henceforward  all  the  former 
sources  of  food  wrested  from  a  niggard  Nature  became 
as  nothing  to  this  food  of  foods,  but  even  to  this  day 
the  Hopi  have  not  forgotten  their  old-time  intimate 
knowledge  of  the  resources  in  fields  not  sown  by  hu 
man  hands.  With  corn,  which  possesses  a  high  food 
value  and  is  easily  raised,  stored,  and  preserved,  the 
Hopi  and  their  Pueblo  brethren  spread  without  fear 
throughout  the  semi-arid  lands. 

It  has  been  pointed  out  that  a  constant  diet  of  corn 
produces  disagreeable  physiological  effects,  and  this  is 
suggested  for  the  use  of  chile  and  other  condiments, 
the  mixture  of  corn  food  with  meat  and  vegetable 
substances,  and,  in  fact,  for  the  multifarious  ways  of 
preparing  and  cooking  corn.  This  necessity  for  va 
riety  also  gives  an  explanation  of  the  resourcefulness 


66  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

of  the  Hopi  housewife  and  has  acted  as  a  spur  to  her 
invention  of  palatable  dishes. 

The  vocabulary  of  corn  in  the  Ilbpi  language  is 
extensive  and  contains  words  descriptive  even  of  the 
parts  of  the  plant  that  are  lacking  to  :most  civilized 
people.  The  importance  of  corn  is  also  reflected  in 
the  numerous  words  describing  the  kinds  of  meal,  the 
dishes  made  from  corn  or  in  which  corn  enters,  and  of 
the  various  ways  in  which  it  is  prepared  by  fire  for 
the  consumption  of  the  ever-hungry  Hopi.  To  give 
an  incomplete  census  of  corn  foods,  there  are  fifteen 
kinds  of  piki  or  paper  bread,  three  kinds  of  mush; 
five  of  short-cake;  eleven  of  boiled  corn;  four  kinds 
baked  or  roasted  in  the  coals;  two  cooked  by  frying; 
four  stewed  and  eight  of  cooked  shelled  com,  making 
fifty-two  varieties. 

After  the  paper-bread,  perhaps  the  most  popular 
food  is  pigamc,  or  sweet  corn  mush,  wrapped  in  corn- 
husk  and  baked  in  an  underground  oven.  Another 
standby  is  shelled  corn  soaked  and  boiled  till  each 
grain  swells  to  several  times  the  normal  size.  The 
Hopi  like  their  food  well-cooked  and  know  the  art  of 
making  each  starch  grain  expand  to  the  limit.  A 
book  of  Hopi  cookery  would  be  bulky,  but  how  inter 
esting  to  the  housewife  who  would  know  how  to  make 
plain  food  appetizing  without  milk  or  eggs,  and  who 
would  learn  new  and  strange  combinations!  There 
are  cakes  made  from  dried  fruits,  chopped  meat,  and 
straw,  put  on  the  roof  to  dry;  dumplings  formed 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  67 

around  old  hammerstones,  corn  dodgers,  pats  of  corn- 
meal  mush  wrapped  in  corn  husk  and  boiled  or  baked, 
and  many  other  styles  of  food  that  would  seem 
strange  to  other  than  a  Hopi  epicure. 

When  it  is  time  to  dine,  a  large  bowl  of  stew  is 
placed  on  the  floor  as  the  piece  de  resistance  and  beside 
it  a  tray  of  piki.  Each  member  of  the  family  breaks 
off  a  piece  of  piki,  and,  holding  it  between  thumb  and 
finger,  it  is  dragged  through  the  stew  much  like  a 
seine  to  catch  as  many  particles  of  meat  as  possible, 
then  deposited  far  back  in  the  mouth  so  that  the  stew 
adhering  to  the  fingers  may  be  cleared  off  with  a  re 
sounding  smack  of  the  lips.  A  traveler  to  Hopi  in 
1869  describes  a  more  formal  meal  which  consisted  of 
mutton,  dried  peaches,  blue  piki,  coffee,  and  a  drink 
made  by  steeping  the  roasted  heart  of  agave  in  water. 
This  writer  says : 

You  take  a  small  piece,  lay  a  fragment  of  mutton 
and  some  peaches  upon  it  or  a  little  of  the  sweet 
liquid  and  bolt  the  mass,  spoon  and  all.  This  dinner, 
though  prepared  and  cooked  by  Indians,  tasted  better 
than  many  a  meal  eaten  by  us  in  border  settlements 
cooked  by  whites. 

Hopi  women  assiduously  gather  the  seeds  of  grasses 
and  other  plants,  which  they  grind  up  and  add  toV 
corn-meal  to  improve  the  flavor  of  the  bread,  or,  per 
haps,  a  prized  bread  is  made  entirely  of  the  ground 
seed  of  some  desert  plant.  Oily  seeds,  such  as  those 
of  the  piiion,  pumpkin,  and  melons  are  ground  to  form 
shortening  in  various  cakes  and  to  add  richness  to 


68  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAKD 

stews.  Often  food  is  colored  with  harmless  vegetable 
dyes,  no  doubt  with  the  deep-laid  scheme  on  the  part 
of  the  mother  of  the  household  to  cause  the  familial 
fare  to  be  attacked  with  renewed  zest.  Our  tradition 
of  "spring  lamb  with  mint  sauce"  is  duplicated  by 
stewed  rabbit  with  nanakopski  greens,  which,  witir 
various  other  herbs,  are  put  to  appropriate  uses  by  the 
master  of  the  Hopi  culinary  art. 


IV 
THE  WORKERS 

The  Hopi  believe  in  the  gospel  of  work,  which  is 
evenly  divided  between  the  men  and  the  women. 

When  it  is  said  that  people  work,  there  is,  uncon 
sciously  perhaps,  a  desire  to  know  the  reason,  which 
is  rarely  a  subject  of  curiosity  when  people  amuse 
themselves.  Come  to  think  of  it,  the  answer  is  an 
old  one,  and  a  Hopi,  if  asked  why  he  works,  might  put 
forward  the  first  great  cause,  nusha,  "food." 

Not  only  must  the  Hopi  work  to  supply  his  wife 
and  little  ones,  but  he  must  do  his  share  for  his  clan, 
which  is  the  large  family  of  blood-relations,  bound 
together  by  the  strongest  ties  and  customs  of  mutual 
helpfulness.     This  family  is  an  object  of  the  greatest 
pride,  a  little  world  of  its  own,  in  which  every  member 
from  the  least  to  the  greatest  has  duties  and  respon 
sibilities.     So  all  labor  —  men,  women,  and  the  little, 
ones,  who  add  their  tiny  share.     The  general  division  • 
of  work  gives  the  woman  the  affairs  of  the  household,,' 
and  the  man  the  cultivation  of  the  fields.     Men  plant- 
corn  and  the  older  women  often  help  hoe  it,  and  the  • 
women  and  children  frequently  go  down  to  the  fields', 
and  watch  the  crops  to  keep  off  birds._ 


70  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

When  the  harvest  is  gathered,  taken  up  the  mesa, 
and  put  into  the  granary,  man's  interest  in  it  ceases, 
except  in  the  matter  of  eating  a  large  share.  Never 
was  a  Hopi  who  was  not  hungry.  Much  of  the  wo 
man's  time  is  taken  up  in  grinding  corn  and  baking 
bread.  The  water-carrying  falls  to  her,  and  this 
duty  might  give  rise  to  a  suspicion  that  she  has  the 
larger  share  of  the  burdens,  if  the  Hopi  were  not  com 
pelled  to  be  frugal  in  the  use  of  water.  Besides  the 
duties  mentioned,  she  may  also  add  that  of  potter, 
basket  maker,  house  builder,  and  sometimes  carver  of 
dolls  and  maker  of  moccasins.  Then  the  children  must 
be  cared  for,  but  everyone  takes  a  hand  at  that,  in 
cluding  the  children  themselves.  If  it  were  not  for  the 
numerous  ceremonies,  woman's  work  in  Hopiland 
would  be  much  easier.  Grinding,  baking,  water-carry 
ing,  and  the  bother  and  hurry  of  preparation  for  vari 
ous  events  continue  with  painful  iteration.  The  Hopi 
housewife  can  give  full  condolence  to  her  white  sister 
who  has  borne  the  burdens  of  a  church  festival,  and 
the  plaint  that  "woman's  work  is  never  done"  would 
sound  familiar  to  her  ears.  Still,  rarely  is  she  heard 
to  bewail  her  lot,  and  it  may  be  depended  on  that  no 
maidens  bloom  in  idleness  about  her  house. 

But  the  men  also  follow  crafts,  and  of  these,  card 
ing,  spinning,  dyeing,  and  weaving  are  exclusively 
man's  work  in  contrast  with  the  Navaho,  among  whom 
such  matters  are  woman's  work.  His  also  is  the  task 
of  wood-gathering,  which  takes  him  far  afield,  since 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  71 

there  is  hardly  a  growing  thing  in  the  neighborhood 
worth  collecting  for  fuel.  Coal  there  is  in  the  ground 
in  plenty,  but  the  Hopi  make  less  use  of  it  than  did 
their  ancestors,  and  the  householder  sets  out  from 
time  to  time  with  a  burro  or  two  for  the  distant  mesas, 
where  the  stunted  cedars  grow,  to  lay  in  wood  for 
cooking.  Each  year  the  cedars  get  farther  away,  so 
that  at  some  future  time  the  Hopi  may  have  to  make 
use  of  the  neglected  coal. 

A  Hopi  is  in  a  fair  way  to  become  a  great  man 
among  his  kin  when  he  owns  horses  and  a  wagon. 
In  consequence  of  such  wealth,  he  usually  shows  his 
pride  by  the  ail's  he  assumes  over  his  less  fortunate 
tribesmen,  and  justly,  too,  because  hauling  supplies 
for  the  schools  and  traders  brings  in  the  silver  dollars 
that  replenish  the  larder  with  white  man's  food.  Ponies 
are  cheap,  and  twenty  can  exist  as  well  as  one  on  the 
semi-starvation  of  the  desert,  so  a  Hopi  teamster  often 
takes  along  his  whole  herd  when  on  a  freighting  trip, 
to  make  sure  of  arriving  at  his  journey's  end,  and  a 
look  at  his  horses  will  prove  him  a  wise  man. 

Seemingly  the  men  work  harder  making  parapher 
nalia  and  costumes  for  the  ceremonies  than  at  any 
thing  else,  but  it  should  be  remembered  that  in  ancient 
days  everything  depended,  in  Hopi  belief,  on  propiti 
ating  the  deities.  Still  if  we  would  pick  the  threads 
of  religion  from  the  warp  and  woof  of  Hopi  life  there 
apparently  would  not  be  much  left.  It  must  be  re 
corded,  in  the  interests  of  truth,  that  Hopi  men  will 


72  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

work  at  day 's  labor  and  give  satisfaction  except  when 
a  ceremony  is  about  to  take  place  at  the  pueblo,  and 
duty  to  their  religion  interferes  with  steady  employ 
ment  much  as  fiestas  do  in  the  easy-going  countries  to 
the  southward. 

Really,  the  Hop!  deserve  great  credit  for  their  in- 
j  dustry,  frugality,  and  provident  habits,  and  one  must 
commend  them  because  they  do  not  shun  work  and  be 
cause  in  fairness  both  men  and  women  share  in  the 
labor  for  the  common  good. 

An  account  of  the  arts  which  are  carried  on  in  the 
Hopi  towns  may  prove  interesting  to  the  reader  who 
would  like  to  know  something  of  the  methods  of  the 
moccasin  maker,  potter,  weaver,  carver,  basket  maker, 
and  house  builder,  examples  of  whose  handiwork  are 
scattered  widely  among  collectors  of  artistic  and  re 
markable  things. 

As  though  to  keep  up  the  dignity  of  the  Peaceful 
People  the  wife  of  "Harry,"  the  new  Snake  chief  of 
Walpi,  frequently  wears  the  cumbrous  foot-gear  com 
mon  along  the  Rio  Grande.  In  spite  of  the  scarcity 
of  deer-skins,  every  Hopi  bride  must  have  as  part  of 
her  trousseau  a  pair  of  these  remarkable  foot-cover 
ings,  which  require  a  large  deerskin  for  their  manu 
facture.  When  the  burdensome  ceremony  of  marriage 
is  over  the  moccasins  are  laid  away  or  worn  out  and 
never  again  may  the  woman  expect  to  have  her  meas 
ure  taken  for  another  pair. 

But  as  moccasins  are  a  part  of  the  men's  costume 


MESA  FOLK  t)F  HOPILAND  73 

without  which  they  cannot  run  well  over  the  yielding 
sand,  and  as  there  is  no  village  shoemaker,  every'inan 
must  make  his  own  or  go  barefoot.  Frequently  in  the 
villages  one  meets  a  moccasin  maker,  chewing  at  the 
rawhide  and  busily  plying  his  awl  and  sinew  while  he 
goes  gadding  about.  Just  before  the  Snake  Dance, 
when  every  Snake  priest  must  provide  a  pair  of  new 
moccasins  for  himself,  this  art  is  very  much  in  evi 
dence. 

The  moccasin  maker  takes  pride  in  hiding  his 
stitches,  and  it  must  be  said  that  his  sewing  is  excep 
tionally  good  in  spite  of  the  crude  tools  of  his  craft. 
With  the  same  skill  he  displays  in  other  crafts,  the 
Hopi  prepares  the  leather  for  the  indispensable  moc 
casins.  The  simplest  way  of  giving  color  to  the  leather 
is  to  rub  red  ocher  or  other  clay  into  the  soft-tanned 
skin,  as  is  seen  in  the  red  moccasins  of  the  Snake 
dancers.  A  warm  brown  is  given  to  the  leather  with 
an  infusion  of  the  bark  of  the  water  birch,  and  a 
black  dye  is  made  by  burning  pifion  resin  with  crude 
native  alum.  Sometimes  the  esthetic  tastes  of  a  young 
man  are  gratified  by  moccasins  dyed  with  aniline  red 
or  blue  according  to  his  fancy. 

If  the  visitor  will  give  an  order  for  a  pair  of  totcliiy 
he  may  see  the  whole  process  at  his  leisure.  A  piece 
of  well-curried  cowhide,  preferably  from  the  back  of 
the  animal,  is  produced,  the  outline  of  the  foot  is 
marked  out  on  it  and  a  margin  is  left  by  the  cutter  for 
the  turning  up  of  the  sole.  This  is  all  the  moccasin 


74  MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND 

maker  seems  to  require,  and  his  formula  for  the  height 
of  the  instep  has  not  been  divulged,  but  it  must  be  ef 
fective,  because  moccasins  are  made  to  fit  with  greater 
art  than  is  displayed  by  many  civilized  shoemakers. 

The  soles  axe  buried  in  damp  sand  to  make  them 
pliable,  and  the  front  section  of  the  top  is  sewn  around 
the  edge  reaching  to  about  the  ankle  bones.  The  moc 
casin  is  then  turned  inside  out  and  the  ankle  section 
sewn  on.  Tying  strings  are  added,  or  if  especial  style 
is  desired,  silver  buttons  made  by  Navaho  from  dimes 
or  quarters  take  their  place. 

The  Hopi  live  a  very  long  way  from  the  range  of 
the  deer,  a  fact  which  accounts  largely  for  their  use  of 
woven  fabrics.  But  deerskins  must  always  have  been 
in  demand,  and  these  were  got  in  exchange  with  the 
Navaho,  Havasupai,  and  other  neighbors.  Tn  this  way 
in  old  times  buffalo  skins  and  pelts  of  animals  came 
to  Tusayan,  and  Hopi  bread  and  blankets  went  to  re 
mote  mountains  and  plains. 

It  would  be  interesting  to  know  whether  the  Hopi 
formerly  were  sandal  people  or  moccasin  people,  and 
this  knowledge  would  reveal  a  great  deal  that  is  now 
mere  guesswork  as  to  their  history.  The  sandal  peo 
ple  would  mean  those  of  the  south  who  were  of  Mex 
ico,  where  no  moccasins  seem  ever  to  have  been  worn. 
The  moccasin  people  would  be  those  of  the  north,  the 
tribes  of  our  mountains  and  plains,  among  whom  this 
foot-wear  is  typical.  Perhaps  the  Hopi  belong  to  both 
classes.  The  cliff-dwellers  wore  sandals,  and  for  win- 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  75 

ter  had  boots  of  network  to  which  turkey  feathers 
were  skilfully  fastened  as  covering.  The  sandals 
found  in  the  cliff-houses  are  variously  woven  from 
rushes  or  agave  strips,  or  maybe  a  plain  sole  of  leather 
with  the  toe  cord,  but  those  worked  of  cotton  showing 
ingenious  designs  are  worthy  of  the  highest  admira 
tion. 

Those  clans  of  the  cliff-people  and  the  clans  f  rom  the 
south  that  congregated  in  Tusayan  centuries  ago  were 
sandal  wearers,  while  the  resident  clans  and  those 
coming  from  the  north,  perhaps  bands  of  the  Ute,  — 
were  moccasin  wearers  and  impressed  their  language 
and  moccasins  on  the  Hopi.  This  was  much  to  the  ad 
vantage  of  the  Hopi,  granting  that  they  had  never 
thought  of  better  protection  than  sandals  from  the 
biting  winter. 

Everyone  who  visits  Tusayan  will  bring  away  as  a 
souvenir  some  of  the  work  of  Nampeo,  the  potter  who 
lives  with  her  husband  Lesu  in  the  house  of  her 
parents  at  Hano,  the  little  Tewa  village  on  the  great 
Walpi  mesa  near  the  gap.  The  house  belongs  to 
Nampeo 's  mother  according  to  Pueblo  property  right, 
wherein  she  and  her  husband,  both  aged  and  ruddy 
Tewa,  with  their  children  and  grandchildren  live 
amicably  as  is  usual  among  the  Peaceful  People.  The 
house  below  the  mesa,  topped  with  a  glowing  red  iron 
"Government"  roof,  is  Nampeo 's,  who  thus  has  two 
houses,  but  she  spends  most  of  her  time  in  the  parental 
dwelling  at  Hano. 


76  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

Nampeo  is  a  remarkable  woman.  No  feeling  of  her 
racial  inferiority  arises  even  on  the  first  meeting  with 
this  Indian  woman,  bare-foot,  bonnetless,  and  clad  in 
her  quaint  costume.  For  Nampeo  is  an  artist-potter, 
the  sole  survivor  in  Hano  of  the  generations  of  women 
artists  who  have  deposited  the  product  of  their  handi 
craft  in  the  care  of  the  dead. 

In  the  household  her  aged  father  and  mother  arc 
final  authority  on  the  interpretation  of  ancient  sym 
bolic  or  cult  representations  in  art.  Nampeo  likewise 
carefully  copies  on  paper  the  decorations  of  all  avail 
able  ancient  pottery  for  future  use.  Her  archeologi- 
cal  methods  are  further  shown  by  her  quest  for  the 
clays  used  by  those  excellent  potters  of  old  Sikyatki 
and  by  her  emulation  of  their  technique. 

One  noon  under  the  burning  August  sun,  Doctor 
Fewkes  and  the  writer  climbed  the  East  Mesa,  the 
former  to  attend  the  Flute  Ceremony  at  Walpi  and  the 
latter  with  an  appointment  to  pry  into  the  secrets  of 
Nanipeo,  the  potter.  In  the  house,  pleasantly  cool 
and  shaded,  sat  the  old  couple  and  Lesu.  The  baby 
was  being  secured  to  its  board  for  its  afternoon  nap, 
while  Lesu  spun.  It  was  a  pleasure  to  examine  the 
quaint  surroundings  and  the  curious  belongings  hung 
on  the  wall  or  thrust  above  the  great  ceiling  beams,  — 
strings  of  dried  wiwa,  that  early  spring  plant  which 
has  before  now  tided  the  Peaceful  People  over  famine, 
gaily  painted  dolls,  blankets,  arrows,  feathers,  and 
other  objects  enough  to  stock  a  museum.  Lesu  did  the 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  77 

honors  and  said  among  other  things  that  some  of  the 
ceiling  beams  of  the  room  came  from  ancient  Awatobi, 
destroyed  in  1700. 

.A  small  niche  in  the  rear  wall  of  the  living  room, 
-at  the  back  of  which  stood  a  short  notched  log-ladder, 
caused  some  speculation.  Quite  unexpectedly  and  in 
a  somewhat  startling  way  its  purpose  was  explained, 
for,  when  someone  called  the  absent  Nampeo,  a  pair  of 
feet  were  seen  coming  down  the  steps  of  the  ladder, 
followed  finally  by  Nampeo,  who,  after  a  profound 
bodily  contortion,  smilingly  emerged  from  the  narrow 
passage  into  the  room. 

Nampeo  was  prepared  to  instruct.  Samples  of  the 
various  clays  were  at  hand  and  the  novice  was  initi 
ated  into  the  qualities  of  the  hisat  chuoka,  or  ancient 
clajr,  white,  unctuous  and  fragrant,  to  which  the 
ancient  Sikyatki  potters  owed  the  perfection  of  their 
ware ;  the  reddish  clay,  siwu  chuoka,  also  from  Sikyat 
ki;  the  hard,  iron-stained  clay,  clwkw  chiwka,  a  white 
elajr  with  which  vessels  are  coated  for  finishing  and 
decoration,  coming  from  about  twelve  miles  southeast 
of  Walpi.  In  contrast  with  Nampeo 's  four  clays  the 
Hopi  women  use  only  two,  a  gray  body  clay,  cliaka- 
butska,  and  a  white  slip  clay,  kutsatsuka. 

Continuing  her  instructions  Nampeo  transferred  a 
handful  of  well-soaked  ancient  clay  from  a  bowl  on  the 
floor  by  her  side  to  a  smooth,  flat  stone,  like  those 
found  in  the  ruined  pueblos.  The  clay  was  thrust 
forward  by  the  base  of  the  right  hand  and  brought 


78  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

back  by  the  hooked  fingers,  the  stones,  sticks,  and  hai :»s 
being  carefully  removed.  After  sufficient  working, 
the  clay  was  daubed  on  a  board,  which  was  carried  out, 
slanted  against  the  house,  and  submitted  to  the  all- 
drying  Tusayan  sun  and  air.  In  a  short  time  the  clay 
was  transferred  from  the  board  to  a  slab  of  stone  and 
applied  in  the  same  way,  the  reason  being  a  minor  one 
known  to  Nampeo,  —  perhaps  because  the  clay  after 
drying  to  a  certain  degree  may  adhere  better  to  stone 
than  to  wood.  Sooner  than  anyone  merely  acquaints  d 
with  the  desiccating  properties  of  the  moisture-laden 
air  of  the  East  might  imagine,  the  clay  was  ready  to 
work  and  the  plastic  mass  was  ductile  under  the  fin 
gers  of  the  potter. 

Nampeo  set  out  first  to  show  the  process  of  coiling  a 
vessel.  The  even  "ropes"  of  clay  were  rolled  out  from 
her  smooth  palms  in  a  marvelous  way,  and  efforts  to 
rival  excited  a  smile  from  the  family  sitting  around  as 
interested  spectators.  The  concave  dish  called  tabipi, 
in  which  she  began  the  coiled  vessel  and  which  turns 
easily  on  its  curved  bottom,  seems  to  be  the  nearest  ap 
proach  of  the  Pueblos  to  the  potter's  wheel.  The 
seeming  traces  of  unobliterated  coiling  on  the  bases  of 
some  vessels  may  be  the  imprints  from  the  coils  of  the 
tabipi.  As  the  vessel  was  a  small  one,  the  coiling  pro 
ceeded  to  the  finish  and  the  interims  of  diying  as  ob 
served  in  the  manufacture  of  large  jars  were  not  neces 
sary.  Then  gourd  smoothers,  tuhupbi,  were  employed 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  79 

to  close  up  the  coiling  grooves,  and  were  always  backed 
from  the  outside  or  inside  by  the  fingers.  Finally  the 
smooth  ' '  green ' '  vessel  was  set  aside  to  dry. 

Then  a  toy  canteen  was  begun  by  taking  a  lump  of 
clay  which,  by  modeling,  soon  assumed  the  shape  of  a 
low  vase.  With  a  small  stick,  a  hole  was  punched 
through  each  side,  a  roll  of  clay  was  doubled  for  the 
handles,  the  ends  thrust  through  the  holes  and 
smoothed  down  inside  the  vase,  through  the  opening. 
The  neck  of  the  canteen  was  inserted  in  a  similar  way. 
Now  the  problem  was  to  close  the  opening  in  this  soft 
vessel  from  the  outside.  Nampeo  threw  a  coil  around 
the  edge  of  the  opening,  pressing  the  layers  together, 
gradually  drawing  in,  making  the  orifices  smaller  un 
til  it  presented  a  funnel  shape.  Then  the  funnel  was 
pressed  toward  the  body  of  the  canteen,  the  edges 
closed  together,  soldered,  smoothed,  and  presto !  it  was 
done  and  all  traces  of  handling  hidden.  Anyone 
knowing  the  difficulties  will  appreciate  this  surpris 
ingly  dextrous  piece  of  manipulation.  Afterward, 
Nampeo  made  a  small  vase-shaped  vessel,  by  modeling 
alone,  without  the  addition  of  coiling  as  in  the  shaping 
of  the  canteen. 

The  ware  when  it  becomes  sufficiently  dry  must  re 
ceive  a  wash  of  the  white  clay  called  liopi  chuoka  or 
kutsatsuka,  which  burns  white.  Thereupon  it  is  care 
fully  polished  with  a  smooth  pebble,  shining  from  long 
use,  and  is  ready  for  decoration.  The  use  of  the  glar 
ing  white  slip  clay  as  a  ground  for  decoration  was 


80  MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND 

probably  brought  from  the  Rio  Grande  by  the  Tewa ; 
ancient  Hopi  ware  is  much  more  artistic,  being  po  - 
ished  on  the  body  or  paste,  which  usually  blends  ia 
harmony  with  the  decoration. 

Nampeo  exhibited  samples  of  her  paints,  of.  whicri 
she  knows  only  red  and  dark  brown.  The  red  paint  is 
yellow  ochre,  called  sikyatfio,  turning  red  on  firing. 
It  was  mixed  on  a  concave  stone  with  water.  The 
dark  brown  paint  is  made  from  toho-,  an  iron  stone 
brought  from  a  distant  mesa.  It  was  ground  on  a 
slab  with  a  medium  made  from  the  seed  of  the  tans./ 
mustard  (Sisymbrium  canescens).  The  brushes  were 
two  strips  of  yucca,  mohu,  one  for  each  color.  With 
these  slender  means,  without  measurement,  Nampeo 
rapidly  covered  the  vessels  with  designs,  either  geo 
metrical  or  conventionalized,  human  or  cult,  —  fig 
ures  or  symbols.  The  narrow  brush,  held  like  a  paint 
er's  striper,  is  effective  for  fine  lines.  In  broad  lines 
or  wide  portions  of  the  decoration,  the  outlines  are 
sharply  defined  and  the  spaces  are  filled  in.  No  mis 
takes  are  made,  for  emendations  and  corrections  are 
impossible. 

Quite  opportunely  the  next  day,  an  invitation  to 
see  the  burning  of  pottery  came  from  an  aged  potter 
who  resides  at  the  Sun  Spring.  When  the  great  Hopi 
clock  reached  the  appointed  place  in  the  heavens,  the 
bowed  yet. active  potter  was  found  getting  ready  for 
the  important  work  of  firing  the  ware.  In  the  heap 
of  cinders,  ashes,  and  bits  of  rock  left  from  former 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  81 

firings,  the  little  old  woman  scooped  out  a  concave 
ring.  Nearby  was  a  heap  of  slabs  of  dry  sheep's 
droppings,  quarried  from  the  floor  of  a  fold  perched 
on  a  ledge  high  up  the  mesa  and  brought  down  in  the 
indispensable  blanket.  In  the  center  of  the  concave 
kiln  floor  a  heap  of  this  fuel  was  ignited  by  the  aid  of 
some  frayed  cedar  bark  and  a  borrowed  match  from 
the  opportune  Pahana,  ' '  people  of  the  far  water, ' '  the 
name  by  which  white  men  are  known.  When  the  fire 
was  well  established,  it  was  gradually  spread  over  the 
floor  to  near  the  margin  and  the  decorated  bowls 
brought  from  the  house  were  set  up  around  with  the 
concave  sides  toward  the  fire,  while  the  potter  brought, 
in  her  blanket,  a  back  load  of  friable  sandstone  from 
a  neighboring  hillock. 

Under  the  first  heat  the  ware  turned  from  white  to 
purple  gray  or  lavender,  gradually  assuming  a  lead 
color.  They  were  soon  heated  enough  and  were  ready 
for  the  kiln.  Guarding  her  hand  by  the  interposition 
of  a  fold  of  the  blanket,  the  potter  set  the  vessels,  now 
quite  unattractive,  aside,  proceeded  to  rake  the  fire 
flat  and  laid  thereon  fragments  of  stone  at  intervals  to 
serve  as  rests  or  stilts  for  the  ware.  Larger  vessels 
were  set  over  smaller  and  all  were  arranged  as  com 
pactly  as  possible.  Piece  by  piece,  dextrously  as  a 
mason,  the  potter  built  around  the  vessels  a  wall  of 
fuel,  narrowing  at  the  top,  till  a  few  slabs  completed 
the  dome  of  the  structure,  itself  kiln  and  fuel. 

Care  was  taken  not  to  allow  the  fuel  to  touch  the 


82  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

vessels,  as  a  discoloration  of  the  ware  would  result, 
which  might  subject  the  potter  to  the  shafts  of  ridi 
cule.  Gradually  the  fire  from  below  creeps  up  the 
walls  till  the  interior  is  aglow  and  the  ware  becomes 
red  hot.  Little  attention  is  now  needed  except  closing 
burned  out  apertures  with  new  pieces  of  fuel;  the 
potter,  who  before,  during  the  careful  and  exact  dis 
positions,  has  been  giving  little  ejaculations  as  though 
talking  to  a  small  child,  visits  the  kiln  intermittently 
from  the  nearby  house.  Here  she  seeks  refuge  from 
the  penetrating,  unaromatic  smoke  and  the  blazing 
sun. 

The  Hopi  have  an  odd  superstition  that  if  any  one 
speaks  above  a  whisper  during  the  burning  of  pottery 
the  spirit  inhabiting  the  vessel  will  cause  it  to  break. 
No  doubt  the  potter  had  this  in  mind  while  she  was 
whispering  and  was  using  all  her  blandishments  to 
induce  the  small  spirits  to  be  good. 

She  remarked  that  when  the  sun  should  hang  over 
the  brow  of  the  mesa  at  the  height  indicated  by  her 
laborious  fingers,  the  ware  would  be  baked,  the  kiln  a 
heap  of  ashes,  the  yellow  decoration  a  lively  red  and 
the  black  a  dark  brown  on  a  rich  cream-color  ground. 
Next  day,  with  true  foresight,  she  brought  her  quaint 
wares  to  the  camp  and  made  a  good  bargain  for  them, 
incidentally  asking,  "Matches  all  gone?" 

One  woman  at  least  in  Tusayan  is  a  weaver  of  blank 
ets.  Anowita's  wife  enjoys  that  distinction  because 
she  is  a  Navaho,  among  whom  weaving  is  woman's 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  83 

work.  The  Hopi  house  wives  have  enough  to  do  keep 
ing  house,  a  thing  not  burdensome  to  the  Navaho,  and 
as  has  been  explained,  the  Hopi  men  hold  a  monopoly 
of  the  spinning  and  weaving. 

Time  out  of  mind  the  Hopi  have  grown  cotton  in 
their  little  fields,  and  the  first  white  men  that  made 
their  acquaintance  were  presented  with  " towels"  of 
their  weaving  as  a  peace  offering.  In  the  cliff-houses 
of  the  ancient  people  are  found  woven  fabrics  of  cot 
ton  and  rugs  made  of  strips  of  rabbit  fur  like  those 
now  to  be  seen  in  the  pueblos.  The  ancient  people 
also  had  feather  garments  made  by  tying  plumage  to 
a  network  of  cords.  In  the  ruins  of  the  pueblos  one 
often  finds  cotton  seeds  which  have  been  buried  with 
the  dead,  and  the  braidejj,  mats  of  yucca  or  bark  and 
bits  of  cloth  fortunately  preserved  show  that  the  peo 
ple  of  former  times  were  skilful  weavers.  There  is 
no  reason  to  doubt  that  the  Hopi  stuffs  were  prized 
for  their  excellence  throughout  the  Southwest  in  the 
early  times  as  they  are  now. 

When  the  Spaniards  brought  sheep  among  the  pue 
blos,  the  weavers  and  fabric  makers  seem  to  have  ap 
preciated  the  value  of  wool  at  once,  and  the  ancient 
garments  of  feathers  and  skins  quickly  disappeared. 
Cotton  remained  in  use  only  for  ceremonial  costumes 
or  for  cord  employed  in  the  religious  ceremonies.  The 
rabbit-fur  robes  which  once  were  made  throughout  a 
vast  region  of  the  Rockies  from  Alaska  to  the  Gulf  of 
California  were  largely  displaced  by  blankets,  in  later 


84  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

years,  gorgeously  dyed  and  cunningly  woven.  Long 
before  the  introduction  of  trade  dyes  the  Hopi  were 
satisfied  with  sober  colors;  the  dark  blue  and  brown 
given  to  the  yarn  by  the  women  were  from  the  plants. 
Even  now  the  Hopi  weavers  stick  to  their  colors  and 
refuse  to  perpetrate  the  zigzags  of  the  Navaho.  Foi 
this  reason  the  women  of  all  the  pueblos  of  the  South 
west  dress  in  dark  blue  and  brown,  as  the  Hopi  art 
purveyors  of  stuffs  for  wear  to  all  their  fellow  house- 
dwellers  of  Indian  lineage.  Good  cloth  it  is,  too,  and 
worthy  of  its  renown,  for  it  wears  exceedingly  well 
More  than  one  generation  often  enjoys  its  service,  and 
when  the  older  folks  get  through  with  their  blanker 
dresses,  the  little  ones  have  garments  fashioned  from 
them  for  their  own  apparel. 

If  one  will  examine  the  Hopi  blankets,  he  will  be 
surprised  at  the  skilful  weaving  they  show.  The 
blanket  dress  often  has  the  body  of  plain  weaving  in 
bla,ck  and  the  two  ends  bordered  with  damask  or  bas 
ket  weave  in  blue.  Sometimes  a  whole  blanket  is  of 
damask,  giving  a  surface  that,  on  close  inspection,  has 
a  pleasing  effect.  The  women's  ceremonial  blanket 
of  cotton  with  blue  and  red  borders  sometimes  show 
three  kinds  of  weaving  and  several  varieties  of  cord 
ing.  The  belts  also  have  a  wonderful  range  of  pat 
terns.  On  the  whole,  one  is  led  to  believe  that  the 
Hopi  are  more  adept  at  weaving  than  their  rivals,  the 
Navaho. 

The  carding  and  spinning  are  thoroughly  done,  the 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  85 

resulting  yam  being  strong,  even,  and  tightly  twisted 
with  the  simple  spindle.  Sometimes  the  spinner 
dresses  and  finishes  the  yarn  by  means  of  a  corn  cob 
smoothed  by  long  use.  The  women,  by  virtue  of  their 
skill  in  culinary  matters,  are  usually  the  dyers,  and  the 
dye  they  concoct  from  sunflower  seeds  or  blue  beans 
is  a  fast  blue.  In  old  times  cotton  was  prepared  for 
spinning  by  whipping  it  with  slender  switches  on  a 
bed  of  sand,  and  this  process  is  yet  required  for  the 
cotton  used  for  the  sacred  sashes.  Now  nearly  every 
family  is  provided  with  wire  cards  purchased  from 
traders.  These  cards  look  quite  out  of  place  in  the 
hands  of  priests  in  the  kiva,  where  they  are  used  in 
combing  the  cotton  for  the  sacred  cord  used  in  tying 
the  feathers  to  the  polios. 

When  the  kiva  is  not  in  use  for  a  ceremony  it  is 
common  to  find  there  a  weaver  busy  at  his  rude  loom 
and  growing  web.  To  the  great  beams  of  the  roof  is 
fastened  the  upper  yarn  beam  of  the  loom,  and  secured 
to  pegs  in  holes  in  the  stone  slabs  of  the  floor  is  the 
lower  yarn  beam.  Between  these  is  tightly  stretched 
the  warp.  The  weaver  squats  on  the  floor  before  the 
loom,  having  ready  by  him  the  few  simple  implements 
of  his  craft,  consisting  of  a  wooden  knife  or  batten 
highly  polished  from  use,  for  beating  down  the  yarn, 
a  wooden  comb  also  for  pressing  home  the  woof,  and 
the  bobbins  which  are  merely  sticks  with  the  yarn 
wrapped  back  and  forward  spirally  upon  them.  He 
picks  out  a  certain  number  of  warp  threads  with  the 


86  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOP1LAND 

batten,  passes  through  the  bobbin,  beats  the  yarn 
home  with  great  patience,  and  so  continues,  making 
slow  headway. 

There  are  several  reasons  why  the  kiva  is  used  by 
the  weavers.  These  subterranean  rooms,  usually  th-j 
property  of  the  men,  are  cool  and  quiet,  and  the  light 
streams  down  from  overhead  across  the  surface  of  the 
web,  allowing  the  stitches  to  be  seen  to  good  advantage-. 
The  best  reason  is  that  the  kiva  ceiling  is  high  enough 
to  allow  the  stretching  of  the  warp  to  the  full  length 
of  a  blanket,  which  cannot  be  done  in  the  low  living 
rooms  of  the  dwellings. 

Belts,  garters,  and  hair  tapes  are  made  on  a  small 
loom  provided  with  reed  or  heddle  frame,  and  usually 
thjs  is  woman's  work.  Strangely  enough  ,the  belt 
loom  is  a  kind  of  harness,  for  the  warp  is  stretched 
out  between  the  woman's  feet  and  a  yoke  that  extends 
across  her  back.  The  yarn  used  for  belts  is  bought, 
from  the  trader.  The  old  belts  are  marvels  of  design 
and  are  among  the  most  pleasing  specimens  of  the 
art  work  of  the  Hopi. 

With  the  introduction  of  dyed  trader's  yarns  and 
coal-tar  colors  has  come  a  deterioration  in  the  work 
of  the  Navaho  weavers.  Among  the  Hopi  this  is  not 
noticeable,  but,  no  doubt,  for  this  reason  the  embroid 
ery  on  the  hems  of  the  ceremonial  blankets,  sashes,  and 
kilts  is  gayer  than  in  former  times  when  subdued  min 
eral  colors  and  vegetable  dyes  only  were  available. 

Every  visitor  to  the  Hopi  pueblos  is  attracted  by 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  87 

the  carved  wooden  figures  painted  in  bright  colors 
and  decorated  with  feathers,  etc.5  that  hang  from  the 
rafters  of  the  houses.  "Dolls,"  they  are  usually 
called,  but  the  Hopi  know  that  they  are  representa 
tions  of  the  spiritual  beings  who  live  in  the  unseen 
world,  and  a  great  variety  there  is  of  them.  Thou 
sands  of  these  figures  are  made  by  the  Hopi,  many 
to  be  sold  to  visitors,  a  thing  no  Zuiii  would  do,  be 
cause  in  that  pueblo  these  images  have  a  religious  char 
acter  and  are  hidden  away,  while  the  Hopi  decorate 
the  houses  with  them. 

The  carvers  of  these  strange  figurines  must  be  grant 
ed  the  possession  of  much  skill  and  ability  in  their 
art,  which  is  carried  on  with  a  few  simple  tools.  The 
country  far  and  near  is  ransacked  for  cottonwood, 
this  being  the  wood  prescribed  for  masks,  dolls,  prayer- 
sticks,  etc.  The  soft  cottonwood,  especially  the  root, 
is  easily  worked  with  the  dull  knives  that  the  Hopi 
possess.  On  every  hand  is  soft,  coarse  sandstone  for 
rubbing  the  wood  into  shape,  and  much  of  the  work  is 
not  only  finished,  but  formed  by  this  means.  For 
this  reason  the  rocks  around  a  Hopi  village  are  cov 
ered  with  grooves  and  pits  left  by  the  workers  in 
wood. 

If  any  parts,  such  as  ears,  hair,  whorls,  etc.,  are  to 
be  added  to  the  figures,  they  are  pegged  on  quite  in 
securely.  Some  of  the  terraces  which  surmount  the 
kachina  masks  are  remarkable  structures  built  up  of 
wood  pegged  together.  A  little  string,  a  few  twigs 


88  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

and  pieces  of  cottonwood  suffice  the  Hopi  for  the  con 
struction  of  flowers  and  complicated  parts  of  the  decor 
ation  of  dolls  and  masks  or  other  ceremonial  belong 
ings.  Corn  husks,  dyed  horsehair,  woolen  yarn,  deer  - 
skin,  cotton  cloth,  twigs,  basketry,  and  feathers  an; 
worked  in  and  the  result,  though  crude,  is  effective. 

But  in  the  realm  of  mechanical  apparatus  the  Hopi 
is  even  ahead  of  the  toy  makers  of  the  Schwartzwald. 
For  the  Palulukong  ceremony  he  arranges  startling 
effects,  causing  the  Great  Plumed  Snake  to  emerge, 
through  screens,  out  of  jars,  or  from  the  ceiling  of 
the  kiva,  to  the  number  of  nine  appearances,  eacl 
requiring  artful  devices.  The  head  of  the  Snake  is  i, 
gourd  furnished  with  eyes,  having  the  mouth  cut  into 
sharp  teeth,  a  long  tongue,  a  plume,  and  the  whole 
surface  painted.  The  body  is  made  up  of  wooden 
hoops  over  which  cords  run  and  is  covered  with  cloth. 
Often  two  of  these  grotesque  monsters  are  caused,  by 
the  pulling  of  cords,  to  advance  and  withdraw  through 
flaps  in  the  screen  and  to  struggle  against  each  other 
with  striking  realism.  Nothing  in  Hopiland  is  more 
remarkable  than  this  drama,  as  one  may  gather  from 
Dr.  Fewkes'  account  of  it  given  at  another  place. 

Little  of  the  Hopi's  skill  as  a  carver  and  decorator 
goes  to  the  furnishing  or  building  of  the  house ;  almost 
all  is  taken  up  with  ceremonial  matters.  Previous  to 
a  few  years  ago  chairs  were  unknown,  as  was  any 
other  domestic  joinery,  except  the  Hopi  head  masks, 
prayer-sticks  and  the  thousand  objects  used  in  his 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  89 

pagan  worship,  in  the  manufacture  of  which  he  was 
master  of  all  expedients.  As  a  worker  in  stone  and 
shell  he  still  knows  the  arts  of  the  ancient  times, 
but  lacks  the  skill  of  his  forebears.  The  turquoise 
mosaics  of  old  days  so  regularly  and  finely  set  on  the 
backs  of  sea  shells,  have  given  place  to  the  uneven 
scraps  of  turquoise  set  in  confusion  on  bits  of  wood, 
as  on  the  woman's  earrings.  Many  devices  have  gone 
out  entirely,  and  it  is  probable  that  no  Hopi  could 
make  an  axe  of  hard  stone  like  the  old  ones  or  chip 
a  finely  proportioned  arrow-head.  The  hand-stones 
for  grinding  corn  are  still  made,  and  a  woman  pecking 
away  at  one  with  a  stone  hammer  is  not  infrequently 
seen  and  heard. 

The  Hopi  were  never  metal-workers,  because  free 
metals  are  scarce  in  the  Southwest.  Their  name  for 
silver,  with  which  they  became  familiar  in  the  shape 
of  coins,  is  shiba,  "a  little  white  cake."  Gold  they 
regard  with  suspicion,  since  it  resembles  copper  or 
brass,  with  which  they  have  been  deceived  at  times  by 
unscrupulous  persons.  A  few  workers  in  silver  have 
produced  some  crude  ornaments,  but  the  Hopi  gets 
his  buttons,  belt  ornaments,  etc.,  from  the  adept  Nava- 
ho,  silversmiths  by  trade,  through  whom  also  strings 
of  beads  come  from  the  pueblos  of  the  Rio  Grande. 

The  rocks  all  over  the  Southwest  bear  witness  that 
the  Hopi  can  draw.  In  thousands  of  instances  he 
expressed  his  meaning  in  symbols  or  in  compositions 
representing  the  chase  of  the  deer  or  mountain  goat. 


90  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

One  of  these  groups  on  the  smooth  rocks  near  Hol- 
brook,  Arizona,  shows  a  man  driving  a  flock  of  turkeys, 
and  is  exceedingly  graphic.  On  the  cliff  faces  below 
Walpi  are  numerous  well-executed  pictographs,  and 
occasionally  one  runs  across  recent  work  on  the  mesa 
top  that  excites  admiration.  With  sculpture  in  the 
round  the  Hopi  has  done  nothing  remarkable  because 
his  tastes  and  materials  have  never  led  in  this  direc 
tion.  A  few  rather  large  figures  rudely  carved  from 
soft  sandstone  may  be  seen  around  the  pueblos,  and 
numerous  fetiches,  some  of  very  hard  stone,  repre 
senting  wolves,  bears,  and  other  animals,  are  still  in 
the  keeping  of  the  societies.  Some  of  these  are  very 
well  done,  but  show  little  progress  in  sculpture.  The 
visitor  must  beware  of  the  little  fetiches  whittled  from 
soft  stone  and  offered  for  sale  as  genuine  by  the  guile 
ful  Hopi  in  quest  of  shiba. 

The  industry  which  the  Hopi  woman  has  all  in  her 
own  hands  is  basket-making,  and  the  work  is  appor 
tioned  to  such  as  have  the  skill  and  fancy  for  it,  as  if 
there  were  a  division  of  labor./  The  women  of  the 
three  towns  on  the  East  Mesa  do  not  make  baskets  at 
all,  those  of  the  Middle  Mesa  sew  only  coiled  baskets, 
while  the  women  of  Oraibi  weave  wicker  baskets  ex 
clusively.  Thus,  there  is  no  difficulty  in  saying  just 
where  a  Hopi  basket  comes  from,  and  there  is  also  no 
excuse  for  not  recognizing  these  specimens  of  Hopi 
woman's  work  at  first  glance,  as  they  have  a  strong 
individuality  that  separates  them  from  all  other  bas 
kets  of  the  Indians. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  91 

If  one  should  visit  the  most  skilful  basket -maker  of 
the  Middle  Mesa,  Kuchyeampsi,  that  modest  little 
woman,  might  be  seen  busily  at  work,  and  from  her  a 
great  deal  about  the  construction  of  coiled  baskets 
could  be  learned.  But  it  would  take  some  time  and 
patience  to  find  that  the  grass  whose  stems  she  gathers 
for  the  body  of  the  coil  is  named  takashu,  which  botan 
ists  know  as  Hilaria  jamesii,  and  that  the  strips  which 
she  sews  over  and  joins  the  coil  are  from  the  leaves 
of  the  useful  moliu  (Yucca  glauca) . 

Then  when  Kuchyeampsi  comes  home  laden  with 
her  basket  materials  one  must  take  further  lessons  in 
stripping  the  yucca  leaves,  splitting  them  with  the 
thumb-nail  to  uniform  size,  and  dyeing  some  of  them 
various  colors,  for  which  anilines  are  principally  used 
in  these  degenerate  days.  One  must  have  an  eye  for 
the  colors  of  the  natural  leaves  of  the  yucca  and  select 
the  yellow  or  yellowish  green  of  the  old  leaves,  the 
vivid  green  of  the  young  leaves,  and  the  white  of  the 
heart  leaves,  for  the  basket  weaver  discriminates  all 
of  these  and  uses  them  in  her  work. 

Of  course  Kuchyeampsi  has  all  her  material  ready, 
the  strips  buried  in  moist  sand,  the  grass  moistened, 
and  she  may  be  starting  a  plaque.  The  slender  coil 
at  the  center  is  too  small  to  be  f  ormed  with  grass  stems, 
so  she  builds  it  up  of  waste  bits  from  the  leaf-tripping, 
wrapping  it  with  yucca  strips,  and  taking  only  a  few 
stitches  with  the  encircling  coil,  since  the  bone  awl  is 
too  clumsy  for  continuous  stitching  at  the  outset.  Af- 


92  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

ter  the  third  round  the  bone  awl  is  plied,  continuously 
piercing  through  under  the  coil  and  taking  in  the 
stitches  beneath  strips.  As  a  hole  is  made  the  yucc*i 
strip  is  threaded  through  and  drawn  tight  on  the 
grass  coil,  and  so  the  patient  work  goes  on  till  the 
basket  is  complete.  The  patterns  which  appear  on  the 
baskets  are  stored  up  in  the  maker's  brain  and  unfold 
as  the  coil  progresses  with  the  same  accuracy  as  is 
evinced  by  the  pottery  decorator.  The  finish  of  the 
end  of  the  coil  gives  an  interesting  commentary  or. 
Hopi  beliefs.  It  is  said  that  the  woman  who  leaves  the 
coil  end  unfinished  does  not  complete  it  because  thai 
would  close  her  life  and  no  more  children  would  bless 
her. 

At  Oraibi  one  may  see  the  women  making  wickei 
tray-baskets.  Three  or  four  slender  sumach  twigs  art 
wickered  together  side  by  side  at  the  middle  and  an 
other  similar  bundle  laid  across  the  first  at  right 
angles.  Then  dyed  branches  of  a  desert  plant  known 
as  "rabbit  brush"  a^e  woven  in  and  out  between  the 
twigs,  and  as  the  basket  progresses  she  adds  other 
radial  rods  until  the  basket  is  large  enough.  She  fin 
ishes  the  edge  by  bending  over  the  sumach  ribs,  form 
ing  a  core,  around  which  she  wraps  strips  of  yucca. 

One  must  admire  the  accuracy  with  which  the  de 
signs  are  kept  in  mind  and  woven  into  the  structure  of 
the  basket  with  splints  of  various  colors  or  strips  of 
tough  yucca.  The  translation  of  a  design  into  the 
radiating  sewing  of  the  coiled  basket  or  the  horizontal 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  93 

filling  of  the  wicker  basket  shows  the  necessity  of  the 
different  treatments,  contrasting  with  the  freedom 
which  it  is  the  potter's  privilege  to  display  on  the 
smooth  surface  of  her  ware.  So  far  as  known  the 
Hopi  women  never  fail  in  applying  their  designs, 
however  intricate.  Frequently  these  designs  repre 
sent  mythical  birds,  butterflies,  clouds,  etc. 

Among  the  Hopi  certain  of  the  villages  are  noted  for 
their  local  manufactures.  Thus  Walpi  and  Hano  are 
practically  the  only  towns  where  pottery  is  made,  the 
Middle  Mesa  towns  are  headquarters  for  coiled  bas 
kets,  and  Oraibi  furnishes  wicker  baskets.  Perhaps 
the  meaning  of  this  is  that  these  arts  belong  to  clans, 
who  have  preserved  them  and  know  the  secrets,  and 
with  the  dying  out  of  the  workers  or  migration  of  the 
clans  the  arts  have  disappeared  or  have  been  trans 
formed.  Another  cause  which  will  suggest  itself  is 
the  local  abundance  and  quality  of  the  materials  re 
quired  to  be  found  in  the  surrounding  plains  and 
mountains. 

Basketry  has  at  least  as  many  uses  as  pottery  among 
the  Hopi,  and  a  number  of  kinds  besides  the  familiar 
plaques  with  symbolical  decoration  have  been  eagerly 
sought  by  collectors.  The  crops  from  the  fields  are 
borne  to  the  houses  on  the  mesas  in  carrying  baskets, 
resembling  a  pannier,  which  aro  worked  of  wicker  over 
a  frame  of  two  bent  sticks  crossed  at  right  angles.  In 
the  house  the  coiled  and  wicker  trays  heaped  high 
with  corn  meal,  the  basket  for  parched  corn  and  the 


94  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

sifting  basket  near  the  corn  grinding  stones,  will  be 
found.  In  the  bread-baking  room  is  the  coarse,  though 
effective,  piki  tray,  and  occasionally  one  may  still  so-* 
a  neatly  made  floor  mat.  The  thin  checker  mat  of 
ancient  days  has  long  since  gone  out  of  use,  but  for 
merly,  the  dead  were  wrapped  in  such  mats  beforo 
they  were  placed  in  the  earth. 

Over  the  fireplace  is  a  hood  of  basketry  plastered 
to  prevent  burning.  The  wicker  cradle  to  which  th-i 
infant  hopeful  is  bound  must  not  be  forgotten.  Sev 
eral  small  globular  wicker  baskets  for  various  pur 
poses  may  also  be  displayed  among  the  household  be 
longings.  The  mat  of  grass  stems  in  which  the  wed 
ding  blanket  is  folded  is  also  a  kind  of  basketry,  a* 
are  the  twined  mats  for  covering  the  hatchway  of  th-i 
kiva  and  the  twined  fence  around  the  fields. 

With  all  their  own  resources,  the  Hopi  are  great 
collectors  of  baskets  from  other  tribes.  One  must  not 
be  surprised  to  see  in  use  in  the  Hopi  houses  the 
water  bottles  coated  with  pitch  and  the  well-madr 
basket-bowls  from  the  Havasupai  of  Cataract  Canyon, 
the  Pimas  of  southern  Arizona,  and  other  tribes 
touched  by  Hopi  commerce. 

The  vizors  of  old  masks  used  in  the  ceremonies  were 
of  basketry,  generally  a  section  cut  from  a  lite  basket- 
bowl,  which  shows  one  of  the  most  interesting  employ 
ments  of  baskets  among  the  Hopi.  The  highly  dec 
orated  trays  may  also  be  said  to  have  a  sacred  charac 
ter  from  their  frequent  appearance  in  the  ceremonies, 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  95 

where  they  are  used  to  contain  prayer-sticks,  meal, 
etc.  Appropriately  the  women's  ceremonies  display 
many  baskets  on  the  altars,  and  in  the  public  dances 
each  woman  carries  a  bright  plaque.  One  of  the 
episodes  of  these  ceremonies  is  full  of  action  when 
women  throw  baskets  to  men  who  struggle  energetical 
ly  for  them.  On  this  account  these  ceremonies  have 
been  called  Basket  Dances. 

One  of  the  frequent  sights  in  a  Hopi  town  is  a 
woman  carrying  a  heaped-up  plaque  of  meal  of  her 
own  grinding  as  a  present  to  some  friend.  This  usual 
ly  happens  on  the  eve  of  a  ceremony,  like  our  Christ 
mas  gifts,  but  no  one  must  fail  to  notice  that  an  equal 
present  is  religiously  brought  in  return. 

The  Hopi  value  their  baskets ;  they  appreciate  fully 
a  pretty  thing,  and  this  explains  why  one  of  the  Sicho- 
movi  men,  who  is  rich  in  Havasupai  baskets,  has  had 
the  good  taste  to  decorate  the  walls  of  the  best  room  of 
his  house  with  these  trophies  of  Cataract  Canyon. 

Judging  from  the  number  of  ruins  in  the  Southwest, 
it  might  be  thought  that  the  former  inhabitants  spent 
much  of  their  time  in  laying  up  walls  and  considered 
the  work  easy.  What  these  ruins  do  show  in  an  em 
phatic  way  is  the  organization  of  the  builders  and 
what  mutual  aid  will  accomplish. 

Dismiss  the  idea  of  the  modern  architect,  builder, 
laborers,  brick  makers,  planing  mill  hands,  plumbers, 
etc.,  combining  to  get  ready  a  dwelling  for  a  family, 
and  substitute  in  their  place  all  the  Indian  relatives, 


96  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

from  the  infant  to  the  superannuated,  lending  willing 
hands  for  the  "raising."  The  primitive  architect  is 
there,  builders  too,  of  skill  and  experience  and  a  full 
corps  of  those  who  furnish  builders'  supplies,  includ 
ing  the  tot  who  carries  a  little  sand  in  her  dress  and 
those  who  ransack  the  country  round  for  brush,  clay, 
beams,  stones,  and  water. 

Before  going  farther  it  must  be  understood  that 
house-building  is  women's  work  among  the  Hopi,  and 
these  likewise  are  the  house-owners.  It  seems  rather 
startling,  then,  that  all  the  walls  of  the  uninhabited 
houses  and  the  fallen  walls  of  the  ruins  that  prevail  in 
the  Southwest  should  be  mainly  the  work  of  women 's 
hands,  whose  touch  we  might  expect  to  find  on  the 
decorated  pottery,  but  not  on  the  structures  that  came 
the  Pueblo  people  to  be  known  as  house-builder  *. 
From  this  one  begins  to  understand  the  importance  of 
woman  in  these  little  nations  of  the  desert. 

Let  us  suppose  that  an  addition  is  to  be  made  to  a 
Hopi  village  of  a  house  containing  a  single  room, 
built  without  regard  to  the  future  additions  which 
may  later  form  a  house  cluster.  The  plan  of  such  a 
house  would  be  familiar  to  any  Hopi  child,  since  it  is 
merely  a  rectangular  box.  When  the  location  has 
been  determined,  word  is  passed  around  among  the 
kinsfolk  and  the  collection  of  stones,  beams,  etc.,  is  be 
gun,  Cottonwood  trees  for  many  miles  around  are 
laid  under  contribution.  Some  beams  may  be  sup 
plied  from  trees  growing  near-by  along  the  washes  and 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  97 

in  the  cornfields,  and  some  may  require  journeys  of 
eighty  or  a  hundred  miles,  representing  immense  la 
bor.  Beams  are  precious,  and  in  this  dry  climate  they 
last  indefinitely,  so  that  one  may  not  be  surprised  to 
find  timber  in  the  present  houses  from  Awatobi  or 
older  ruins,  or  from  Spanish  mission  times.  It  is  also 
probable  that  often  when  pueblos  were  abandoned, 
they  were  revisited  later  and  the  timbers  torn  out  and 
brought  to  the  new  location,  thus  the  ruins  might  ap 
pear  more  ancient  than  they  really  are.  With  the  ad 
vent  of  the  burro,  the  horse,  and  the  iron  axe,  timber 
ing  became  easier  than  in  the  stone  age,  but  it  was  still 
no  sinecure. 

Stones  are  gathered  from  the  sides  of  the  mesa  not 
far  away,  those  not  larger  than  a  moderate  burden  be 
ing  selected.  The  sand-rock  of  the  mesa,  is  soft  and 
with  a  hammer-stone  convenient  masses  may  be  broken 
off.  At  present  there  is  a  quarry  on  the  Walpi  mesa  ; 
the  blocks  gotten  out  by  means  of  axes  are  more  reg 
ular  than  those  in  the  old  houses,  which  show  little  or 
no  traces  of  working.  Between  the  layers  of  rock  are 
beds  of  clay  which  require  only  moistening  with,  water 
to  become  ready  for  the  mason. 

The  architect  has  paced  off  the  ground  and  deter 
mined  the  dimensions  of  the  house,  giving  the  arm 
measurement  of  the  timbers  to  the  logging  party  who, 
with  the  rest,  have  got  the  materials  ready.  The  next 
step  is  to  find  the  house-chief  and  secure  from  him 
four  eagle-feather  prayer-plumes.  These  are  deposited 


98  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

uncfer  the  four  corner  stones  with  appropriate  cero- 
mony  of  breath-prayers  for  the  welfare  of  the  house 
and  its  occupants.  The  plumes  are  dedicated  to  tie 
god  of  the  underworld,  the  sun,  and  other  deities  con 
cerned  with  house-life.  The  builder  then  determines 
where  the  door  shall  be  and  places  an  offering  of  food 
on  either  side  of  it ;  he  then  walks  around  the  si1  e 
from  left  to  right,  sprinkling  a  mixture  of  piki  crumbs 
and  other  food  with  tobacco  along  the  line  of  the  walls, 
singing  to  the  sun  his  kitdamvi,  "house  song";  Si-si, 
a-liai,  si-si,  a-hai,  the  meaning  of  which  has  long  been 
forgotten. 

The  walls  are  laid  in  irregular  courses,  mortar  bo- 
ing  sparingly  used.  The  addition  of  plastering  to  the 
outside  and  inside  of  the  house  awaits  some  future 
time,  though  sometimes  work  on  the  outside  coat  :s 
put  off  to  an  ever  vanishing  manana.  When  the  house 
walls,  seven  or  eight  feet  in  height  and  of  irregular 
thickness  from  seventeen  to  twenty-two  inches  are 
completed,  the  women  begin  on  the  roof.  The  beams 
are  laid  across  the  side  walls  at  intervals  of  two 
feet;  above  these  and  parallel  with  the  side  walls 
are  laid  poles;  across  these  is  placed  a  layer  of 
rods  or  willow  brush,  and  above  this  is  piled  grass  or 
small  twigs.  A  layer  of  mud  comes  next,  and  when 
this  is  dry,  earth  is  placed  on  it  and  tramped  down 
until  hard.  The  roof,  which  is  complicated  and  in 
genious,  is  nearly  level,  but  provision  is  made  for  car 
rying  off  the  water  by  means  of  spouts. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  99 

When  the  roof  is  finished  the  women  put  a  thick 
coating  of  mud  on  the  floor  and  plaster  the  walls.  At 
Zuni  floors  are  nearly  always  made  of  slabs  of  stone, 
but  in  Hopi  mud  is  the  rule.  The  process  of  plaster 
ing  a  floor  is  interesting  to  an  onlooker.  Clay  dug 
from  under  the  cliffs,  crushed  and  softened  in  water 
and  tempered  with  sand  is  smeared  on  the  floor  with 
the  hand,  a  little  area  at  a  time.  The  floor  may  be 
dry  and  occasionally  the  mud  gets  too  hard ;  a  dash  of 
water  corrects  this.  When  the  mud  dries  to  the 
proper  stage,  it  is  rubbed  with  a  smooth  stone  having 
a  flat  face,  giving  the  completed  floor  a  fine  finish  like 
pottery.  As  an  extra  finish  to  the  room  a  dado  is 
painted  around  the  wall,  in  a  wash  of  red  ocher  by 
means  of  a  rabbit  skin  used  as  a  brush.  Formerly  a 
small  space  oh  the  wall  was  left  unplastered;  it  was 
believed  that  a  kachina  came  and  finished  it,  and  al 
though  the  space  remained  bare  it  was  considered  cov 
ered  with  invisible  mud. 

Before  the  house  can  be  occupied  the  builder  pre 
pares  four  feathers  for  its  dedication.  He  ties  the 
nakwakwoci  or  breath  feathers  to  a  willow  twig,  the 
end  of  which  is  inserted  over  one  of  the  central  roof- 
beams.  The  builder  also  appeases  Masauah,  the  God 
of  Death,  by  an  offering  in  which  the  house  is  "fed" 
by  putting  fragments  of  food  among  the  rafters  or  in 
a  niche  in  the  door  lintels,  beseeching  the  god  not  to 
hasten  the  departure  of  any  of  the  family  to  the  un 
derworld.  At  the  feast  of  Soyaluna  in  December,  the 


100  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

feathers,  forming  the  "soul"  of  the  house,  are  re 
newed,  and  at  this  season  when  the  sun  returns  north 
ward,  the  village  house-chief  visits  the  houses  which 
have  been  built  within  the  year  and  performs  a  cere 
mony  over  them. 

A  hole  is  left  in  one  corner  of  the  roof,  under  which 
the  women  build  the  mud  fireplace,  with  its  knob 
andirons  and  the  column  of  pots  with  the  bottoms 
knocked  out  which  form  the  chimney.  Over  the  fire 
place,  a  chimney  hood,  usually  supported  on  posts,  is 
constructed  of  basket-work,  plastered  over  with  mud. 
A  row  of  mealing  stones  slanted  in  sunken  stone  boxes 
in  the  floor  must  not  be  forgotten,  and  no  one  in  Hopi- 
land  could  set  up  housekeeping  Math  out  a  smooth 
stone  slab  to  bake  piki  upon.  Some  of  the  houses  hav  > 
a  low  bench  along  one  or  two  sides  of  the  room  which 
forms  convenient  seats.  The  windows  are  small,  bein£ 
often  mere  chinks,  through  which  the  curious  spy  with 
out  being  seen.  Stones  are  usually  at  hand,  by  means 
of  which,  and  mud,  windows  and  doors  may  be  closed 
when  the  family  go  off  on  a  rather  protracted  stay. 

This  one-room  house  is  the  nucleus  of  the  village, 
When  the  daughters  many  and  require  space  for 
themselves,  another  house  is  built  in  front  of  and  ad 
joining  the  first  one,  and  a  second  story  may  be  added 
to  the  original  house.  Thus  the  cluster  grows,  and 
around  the  spaces  reserved  for  streets  and  plazas  other 
clusters  grow  until  they  touch  one  another  and  rise 
three  or  four  stories,  the  inner  rooms  being  dark  from 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  101 

the  addition  to  the  later  houses  and  these  become  stor 
age  places. 

While  the  old  houses  were  entered  from  the  trap 
doors  in  the  roof,  the  new  houses  have  doors  at  the 
ground  level  and  often  windows  glazed  in  the  most  ap 
proved  style.  Frequently  in  the  march  of  progress 
doors  are  cut  into  the  old  houses,  and  the  streets  begin 
to  assume  the  appearance  of  a  Mexican  town ;  but  the 
old  nucleus  buried  under  the  successive  buildings  rare 
ly  shows  and  may  be  traced  with  difficulty.  In  win 
ter  the  people  withdraw  from  the  exposed  and  retire 
to  the  old  enclosed  rooms,  huddling  together  to  keep 
warm,  enlivening  the  confinement  with  many  a  song, 
legend,  and  story. 

So  much  for  the  woman  builders  of  Tusayan,  to 
whom  all  honor.* 


*  One  who  desires  to  pursue  this  subject  in  more  detail 
should  consult  Mendeleff's  paper  on  Pueblo  Architecture  in 
the  8th  Annual  Report  Bureau  American  Ethnology,  1886-1887. 


AMUSEMENTS 

The  enviable  title  of  "Song-Makers"  has  been 
earned  by  the  music-loving  Indians  of  Tusayan,  and 
their  fame  as  singers  has  gone  out  among  all  the  tribes 
of  the  "Land  of  Little  Rain."  Many  a  less  inventive 
Indian  has  come  a  long,  wearisome  journey  to  learn 
songs  from  the  Hopi,  bringing  also  his  fee,  since  songs 
that  give  the  singer  magic  power  over  the  gods  and 
forces  of  nature  are  not  to  be  had  for  the  asking,  be 
sides  to  their  learning  a  man  must  give  the  full  devo 
tion  of  his  being  and  sit  humbly  at  the  feet  of  his  in 
structors.  The  land  where  the  Hopi  live  may  seem  to 
furnish  slight  incentive  to  song,  especially  when  one 's 
ideas  of  the  desert  are  of  its  dreariness  and  desolation  ; 
but  when  one  sets  foot  in  the  sacred  precincts  of  the 
mysterious  desert  a  new  revelation  comes  to  him  and 
he  sees  with  these  Indians  that  the  wastes  which  un 
fold  from  the  high  mesas  are  full  of  beauty  of  form 
and  brilliancy  of  color.  Sunrise  and  sunset  bring 
wonderful  tints  into  the  landscape,  —  the  distant  blue 
mountains,  the  violet  cloud  shadows,  the  tawny,  whirl- 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  103 

ing  sand  columns,  the  far-off  thunder-storm,  the  vibra 
tion  of  the  midday  air,  and  the  sparkling  night  sky 
must  inspire  the  most  prosaic  mind.  There  comes  to 
one  in  these  surroundings  a  feeling  of  freedom,  to 
gether  with  a  sense  of  the  vastness,  transparency,  and 
mystery  of  the  desert  which  stir  the  emotions  and 
makes  the  close  pent  life  of  crowded  cities  left  behind 
seem  but  an  unsubstantial  dream.  Here  the  Hopi 
have  been  always  free ;  the  isolated  life  on  the  narrow 
mesas  brings  about  a  close  companionship  and  a  true 
home-life  besides.  The  air  of  the  desert  makes  a  man 
healthy  and  hungry,  thus  cheerfulness  cannot  but  fol 
low,  expressed  in  songs  that  are  from  the  soul. 

It  must  be  confessed  that  the  impression  of  Indian 
music  one  draws  from  various  sources  is  that  it  con 
sists  of  whoops,  yells,  and  odd,  guttural  noises,  but 
this  is  far  from  describing  Hopi  music.  Between  the 
light  and  airy  Kachina  songs  and  the  stirring  though 
somewhat  gruesome  chants  of  the  Shake  ceremony, 
there  is  a  variety  of  compositions  to  many  of  which 
the  most  enlightened  music  lovers  would  listen  with 
pleasure. 

The  Flute  music  is  especially  pleasing.  In  the  sum 
mer  of  1896,  the  writer  had  the  good  fortune  to  wit 
ness  the  Flute  ceremony  at  the  Hopi  pueblo  of  Wai  pi. 
In  the  course  of  the  ritual,  which  is  an  invocation  for 
rain,  a  series  of  songs  are  repeated  each  day  for  several 
days.  To  one  hearing  Indian  music  for  the  first  time 


104  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

the  sensation  was  quite  novel.  The  chorus  of  priests, 
rattle  in  hand,  sang  in  unison  before  the  Flute  altar, 
in  a  narrow,  low,  windowless  room  that  greatly  aug 
mented  the  volume  of  sound.  The  time  was  set  by 
the  speaker-chief,  who  uniformly  shook  his  rattle  eight 
beats  in  five  seconds  for  all  the  songs  and  for  eact 
day  ?s  songs  with  the  accuracy  of  a  metronome.  There 
were  three  beats  in  each  measure.  The  pitch  was  low. 
the  range  limited,  and  the  deep,  vibrant  voices  seemed 
to  portray  the  winds,  thunder,  rain,  the  rushing  water 
and  the  elemental  forces  of  nature. 

The  notation  is  chromatic,  not  possible  to  be  ex 
pressed  on  any  instrument  save  the  violin,  or  the  five- 
hole  transverse  flutes  which  later  accompanied  the 
singing.  These  flutes  were  played  in  unison  on  the 
octave  above  the  voices,  and  their  shrill,  harsh  notes 
marred  the  singing.  In  general  effect  the  music  is 
minor,  but  frequently  major  motives  of  great  beauty 
spring  out  of  dead-level  monotonous  minors.  Some 
times  a  major  motive  is  followed  by  a  minor  counter 
part  of  the  same.  There  is  much  slurring,  and  an 
occasional  reduplication  comes  in  with  great  effect. 
A  number  of  songs  are  monotonous,  with  once  in  a 
while  a  vigorous  movement.  The  closing  song  is 
spirited  and  may  truly  be  called  beautiful.  It  con 
sists  of  several  legato  verses,  each  closing  with  a  turn, 
a  rapid  vibration  of  the  rattle,  and  a  solemn  refrain. 
In  structure  and  melody  it  resembles  a  Christian 
hymn.  The  music  reminds  one  of  the  Gregorian 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  105 

chants,  and  to  the  listener  some  of  the  motives  seemed 
quite  equal  to  those  upon  which  Handel  built  his 
great  oratorios. 

It  is  a  pity  that  the  many  beautiful  songs  of  Tusa- 
yan  cannot  be  written  down  and  preserved  but  this 
will  no  doubt  soon  be  accomplished.  Perhaps  some 
genius  like  Liszt  who  gave  the  world  the  spirit  of  Hun 
garian  folk-music  will  arise  to  ravish  our  ears  with 
these  musical  expressions  passed  down  from  aboriginal 
American  sweet  singers. 

While  the  music  which  most  attracts  our  attention 
in  Hopiland  is  that  of  the  various  ceremonies,  there  is 
still  a  cycle  of  songs,  many  in  number,  of  love,  war, 
or  for  amusement;  those  sung  by  mothers  to  their 
infants,  or  shrilled  by  the  women  grinding  corn.  The 
men  sing  at  their  work,  the  children  at  their  play  in 
this  land  of  the  Song  Makers. 

If  songs  are  numerous  beyond  computation  among 
the  Hopi  there  are  also  more  games  conducing  to 
their  amusement  than  one  finds  among  many  other 
tribes.  One  may  surmise  that  these  games  have  been 
brought  in  by  the  clans  that  came  from  all  points  of 
the  compass  to  make  up  the  Hopi,  and  who  must  have 
touched  elbows  with  other  tribes  of  different  lineage 
during  the  wanderings.  All  games  seem  to  have  been 
borrowed,  and  no  one  may,  in  the  light  of  present 
knowledge,  say  when,  where,  and  by  whom  any  one  of 
the  typical  games  was  invented,  any  more  than  the 
father  of  a  proverb  or  a  joke  may  have  the  parentage 
ascribed  to  him. 


106  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

But  the  Hopi  are  not  disturbed  by  such  philosophi 
cal  considerations  and  adhere  to  the  traditional  and 
time-honored  games  they  know  without  desire  for  in 
novation.  With  them  athletic  games  are  most  pop 
ular,  are  pursued  with  whole-souled  abandon,  and  are 
accompanied  with  a  world  of  noise  and  rough  play; 
but  the  races  and  games  connected  with  the  religious 
ceremonies  are  carried  on  with  due  decorum.  Stout 
shinny  sticks  of  oak  brought  from  the  north  show 
that  the  Hopi  know  the  wide-spread  sport  that  warms 
the  blood  of  many  an  American  boy,  but,  alas!  there 
is  no  ice  for  its  full  enjoyment.  Among  other  athletic 
sports  one  may  reckon  throwing  darts,  shooting  with 
bow  and  arrow  at  a  mark,  or  hurling  the  boomerang- 
like  club,  which  is  an  ancient  weapon,  or  even  im 
promptu  trials  of  skill  in  throwing  stones  or  in  bouts 
of  friendly  wrestling.  The  most  amusing  struggle 
game  is  the  Nuitiiua,  played  by  both  sexes  after  the 
close  of  the  Snake  ceremony.  Men  and  boys  provide 
themselves  with  some  piece  of  pottery  or  other  object  of 
value  and  run  through  the  village  crying  ' '  Wa  ha  ha ! 
Wa  ha  ha!"  pursued  by  the  fleet-footed  women  who 
chase  them  and  struggle  for  the  prize  with  much 
laughter  and  shortness  of  breath.  The  men  take  the 
precaution  to  remove  their  shirts,  if  they  value  them, 
before  they  begin,  for  that  garment  is  not  worth  a 
moment's  purchase  when  the  girls  reach  for  the  prize 
held  at  arm-length  above  the  head. 

Many  of  the  sacred  games  are  of  an  athletic  char- 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  107 

acter.  Of  these  may  be  mentioned  the  numerous  races, 
including  the  kicking  race  in  which  stones  are  carried 
on  top  of  one  foot,  and  the  sacred  game  of  ball.  One 
might  include  in  the  list  the  bow- women  of  the  Mam- 
zrauti  ceremony  and  basket  throwers  of  the  Lalakonti 
ceremony,  since  it  can  be  seen  that  games  are  closely 
connected  with  primitive  religious  beliefs  and  may 
all  have  originated  as  a  form  of  divination,  or  some 
other  early  attempts  of  man  either  to  influence  the 
beings  or  to  spy  into  the  future.  It  may  be  that  some 
games  are  remnants  of  long-forgotten  ceremonies,  once 
of  great  import  to  early  worshippers. 

Of  sedentary  games  there  are  a  number.  One  like 
"fox  and  geese,"  called  totolospi,  is  the  patoli  of 
the  Mexicans,  which  is  said  to  be  in  turn  the  pachise 
of  the  Hindus,  and  the  rectangular  plan  of  this  game 
may  sometimes  be  found  on  the  rocks  near  the  villages. 
There  is  "cup  and  ball,"  a  guessing  game  in  which 
four  cups  cut  from  wood  and  a  stone  about  the  size 
of  a  marble  form  the  paraphernalia;  and  there  is  a 
game  in  which  reed  dice  with  markings  are  thrown. 
A  set  of  these  dice  was  found  in  an  ancient  ruin  near 
Winslow,  Arizona,  and  they  are  represented  on  an 
ancient  bowl  from  Sikyatki,  a  ruin  near  Walpi. 

With  all  these  games  the  Hopi  are  not  gamblers 
and  appear  to  have  the  same  aversion  to  it  as  they 
have  to  fire-water,  differing  in  this  respect  from  the 
Navaho,  Zuili,  and  many  other  tribes  of  Indians.  Most 
of  their  games,  like  those  of  the  ancient  Greeks,  are 


108  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

full  of  the  exhilaration  of  life,  the  glow  of  physical 
training,  the  doing  of  something  to  win  the  favor  of 
the  gods. 

In  this  account  the  children  must  not  be  left  out. 
Imitating  the  customs  of  their  seniors,  they  not  only 
carry  out  the  great  games  but  also  enter  with  abandon 
the  childish  sports  of  chasing,  tag,  ring  around  a 
rosy,  ball,  and  other  juveniles.  Tops  and  popguns  are 
not  unknown,  and  if  a  boy  has  a  pebble  shooter  made 
of  an  agave  stalk  with  a  spring  of  elastic  wood  he 
can  go  as  far  in  mischief  as  ever  Hopi  children  do, 
but  he  never  fires  away  peas  or  beans,  for  they  are  too 
precious. 

It  may  be  well  to  recount  here  the  endurance  of  the 
Hopi  in  their  great  national  accomplishment  —  that  of 
making  long  runs  at  record  speed. 

One  morning  about  seven  o'clock  at  Winslow,  Ari 
zona,  a  message  was  brought  to  the  hotel  that  an  In 
dian  wished  to  see  the  leader  of  an  exploring  party. 
On  stepping  out  on  the  street  the  Indian  was  found 
sitting  on  the  curbstone,  mouth  agape  with  wonder 
at  the  trains  moving  about  on  the  Santa  Fe  Pacific 
Railroad. 

He  delivered  a  note  from  a  white  man  at  Oraibi 
and  it  was  ascertained  that  he  had  started  from  that 
place  at  four  on  the  previous  afternoon,  and  arrived 
at  Winslow  some  time  about  the  middle  of  the  night. 
When  it  is  known  that  the  distance  is  sixty-five  miles 
and  the  Indian  ran  over  a  country  with  which  he 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  109 

was  not  familiar,  the  feat  seems  remarkable.  It  is 
presumed  that  he  ran  until  it  became  dark  and  then 
waited  till  the  moon  rose,  finishing  the  journey  by 
moonlight. 

On  his  back  he  carried  a  canteen  of  water  wrapped 
in  a  blanket.  He  took  only  a  sandwich,  explaining 
that  if  he  ate  he  could  not  run,  and  receiving  the 
answer  to  the  note,  resumed  his  journey  to  Oraibi. 
Afterward  it  was  learned  that  the  runner  reached 
Oraibi  with  the  answer  that  afternoon,  having  been 
promised  a  bonus  if  he  made  the  trip  in  one  day. 
The  distance  run  cannot  be  less  than  130  miles,  a 
pretty  long  course  to  get  over  in  the  time,  and  this 
Indian  is  not  the  best  runner  in  Oraibi.  There  is  one 
man  who  takes  a  morning  practice  of  thirty  miles  or 
so  in  order  to  get  in  trim  for  the  dawn  races  in  some 
of  the  ceremonies,  and  it  is  said  that  he  won  in  such 
a  race  some  years  ago,  distancing  all  competitors. 

Nothing  in  the  whole  realm  of  animal  motion  can 
be  imagined  more  graceful  than  the  movements  of 
one  of  these  runners  as  he  passes  by  in  the  desert, 
his  polished  sinewy  muscles  playing  with  the  utmost 
precision  —  nothing  but  flight  can  be  compared  with 
it.  The  Indians  say  that  moccasins  are  the  best  foot 
wear  for  travel  over  sandy  country,  as  the  foot,  so 
clad,  presses  the  loose  sand  into  a  firm,  rounded  bunch, 
giving  a  fulcrum  for  the  forward  spring,  but  the 
naked  feet  scatters  the  sand,  and  this,  on  experiment, 
was  found  to  be  true. 


110  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

While  excavating  at  Winslow  one  day  some  of  the 
workmen  looked  up  toward  the  north  and  cried  out, 
Hopi  tu,  Hopi  tu,  "The  Hopi  are  coming."  It  was 
some  time  before  our  eyes  could  pick  them  out,  but 
soon  three  men  could  be  seen  running,  driving  a  little 
burro  in  front  at  the  top  of  its  speed.  These  wero 
Walpi  men  journeying  to  a  creek  some  miles  beyond 
Winslow  to  get  sacred  water  for  one  of  their  cere 
monies.  Similar  journeys  are  made  to  San  Francisco 
Mountains  for  pine  boughs  and  to  the  Cataract  of  th»? 
Colorado  to  trade  with  the  Havasupai.  The  Spanisli 
conquerors  were  struck  with  the  ability  of  the  Hopi 
runners,  and  they  record  that  the  Indians  could  easily 
run  in  one  day  across  the  desert  to  the  Grand  Canyon, 
a  distince  which  the  Spaniards  required  three  days' 
march  to  accomplish. 

Often  a  crowd  of  Hopi  young  men  will  go  out  afoot 
to  hunt  rabbits,  and  woe  to  the  bunny  that  comes  in 
reach!  He  is  soon  run  down  and  dispatched  with 
their  curved  boomerangs. 

Though  baseball,  foot-ball,  and  many  other  athletic 
games  of  civilization  have  no  place  among  the  Hopi 
sports,  of  foot  racing  they  are  as  passionately  fond  as 
even  the  ancient  Greeks.  Almost  every  one  of  the 
many  ceremonies  has  its  foot  race  in  which  the  whole 
pueblo  takes  the  greatest  interest,  for  all  the  Hopi 
honor  the  swift  runners. 

This  brings  to  mind  the  story  of  how  Sikyabotoma 
lost  his  hair.  Sikyabotoma,  who  tears  the  school 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  111 

name  of  John,  is  the  finest  specimen  of  physical  man 
hood  at  the  East  Mesa.  John  is  not  unaware  of  this 
gift  of  nature,  as  he  poses  on  all  occasions  out  of  sheer 
pride. 

One  cannot  observe  that  John  got  anything  out  of 
his  American  schooling;  he  seemingly  does  not  speak 
a  word  of  English,  and  he  is  beyond  all  reason  taciturn 
for  a  Hopi.  It  ma3r  be  that  John  is  a  backslider, 
having  forgotten  or  thrown  over  his  early  education 
and  relapsed  to  his  present  state  under  the  influence 
of  Hopi  paganism. 

As  runner  for  the  Walpi  Flute  Society,  his  duty  is 
to  carry  the  offerings  to  the  various  shrines  and 
springs,  skirting  on  the  first  day  the  entire  circuit 
of  the  cultivated  fields  of  the  pueblo,  and  coming 
nearer  and  nearer  each  day  till  he  tolls  the  gods  to 
the  very  doors  of  Walpi.  It  is  no  small  task  to  in 
clude  all  the  fields  in  the  blessings  asked  by  the  Flute 
priests,  since  the  circuit  must  exceed  twenty  miles. 
Each  day  Sikyabotoma,  wearing  an  embroidered  kilt 
around  his  loins,  his  long,  glossy  hair  hanging  free, 
stands  before  the  Flute  priests,  a  brave  sight  to  be 
hold.  They  fasten  a  small  pouch  of  sacred  meal  at 
his  side  and  anoint  him  with  honey  on  the  tip  of  the 
tongue,  the  forehead,  breast,  arms,  and  legs,  perhaps 
to  make  him  swift  as  the  bee.  Then  he  receives  the 
prayer-sticks,  and  away  he  goes  down  the  mesa  as 
though  he  had  leaped  clown  the  five  hundred  feet,  his 
long,  black  hair  streaming.  He  stops  at  a  spring, 


112  MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND 

then  at  a  shrine,  and  in  a  very  short  time  can  scarce 
ly  be  distinguished  running  far  out  by  the  arroyo 
bounding  the  fields.  John  in  this  role  is  a  sight  not 
soon  to  be  forgotten. 

This  brings  us  to  the  story  of  John's  Waterloo. 
At  sunrise  on  the  last  day  of  the  Wawash  ceremony 
there  are  foot  races  in  honor  of  the  gods,  and  a  curious 
condition  of  these  races  is  that  the  loser  forfeits  his 
hair.  Now  the  Hopi  are  like  the  Chinese  in  having 
an  aversion  to  losing  this  adornment.  A  bald  Hopi 
is  a  great  rarity,  and  the  generality  of  the  men  have 
long,  beautiful  locks,  black  as  a  raven's  wing,  washed 
with  soap-root  and  made  wavy  by  being  tied  tightly 
in  a  knot  at  the  back  of  the  head.  Sikyabotoma  en 
tered  the  Wawash  race  with  confidence,  but  when  the 
runners  came  back  on  the  tortuous  trail  up  the  rocks 
Sikyabotoma  was  second.  A  pair  of  sheep  shears  in 
the  hands  of  his  adversary  soon  made  havoc  with  his 
locks.  At  the  time  this  sketch  was  written  John's 
hair  had  grown  again  to  a  respectable  length. 

In  making  his  toilet  as  Flute  Messenger,  to  which 
the  writer  was  a  witness,  John  found  it  necessary  to 
have  his  bang  trimmed.  This  service  was  performed 
by  an  old  fellow  who  picked  up  from  the  floor  a  dubi 
ous  looking  brush  made  of  stiff  grass  stems,  moistened 
it  with  his  tongue  occasionally  as  he  bmshed  John's 
hair,  and  finally  with  a  pair  of  rickety  scissors  cut  the 
bang  to  regulation  shape. 

Sikyabotoma,  in  spite  of  the  drawbacks  pointed  out, 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  113 

is  one  of  the  lions  of  Walpi  by  birth ;  he  also  belongs 
to  the  first  families.  Divested  of  civilized  garb,  and 
as  a  winged  Mercury  flying  with  messages  to  the  good 
beings,  he  is  an  object  to  be  gazed  on  with  admiration, 
disposing  one  to  be  lenient  with  his  besetting  vanity. 


VI 


BIRTH,  MARRIAGE,  AND  DEATH 

A  blanket  hangs  over  the  usually  opened  door  and 
a  feeble  wail  issuing  from  within  the  dusky  house 
betokens  that  a  baby  has  come  into  the  world,  and 
awaits  only  a  name  before  he  becomes  a  member  oi* 
the  Hopi  commonwealth.  The  ceremony  by  whicl 
the  baby  is  to  be  dedicated  to  the  sun  and  given  g. 
name  that  will  bind  him  indissolubly  to  the  religious 
system  of  his  people  is  interesting  from  the  light  it 
casts  on  the  customs  of  the  Hopi  and  the  parallels  it 
offers  to  the  natal  rites  of  other  peoples. 

On  the  mud-plastered  wall  of  the  house,  the  mother 
has  made,  day  by  day,  certain  scratches  which  mark 
the  infant's  age,  or  perhaps  reckons  the  time  on  her 
fingers  till  nineteen  days  have  passed.  The  morning 
of  the  twentieth  day  brings  the  ceremony. 

Meanwhile  the  little  one  has  been  made  to  know 
some  of  the  trials  of  life.  On  the  first  day  of  his 
entrance  into  this  arena,  his  head  has  been  washed  in 
soaproot  suds  and  his  diminutive  body  nibbed  with 
ashes,  the  latter,  it  is  alleged,  to  kill  the  hair,  and  his 
mother  must  also  undergo  the  ceremonial  head  wash- 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  115 

ing,  which  must  be  repeated  on  the  fifth,  tenth,  and 
fifteenth  days  with  the  ainole  root,  which  is  the  only 
soap  known  to  the  Hopi.  Besides,  the  mother  must 
never  be  touched  by  the  direct  rays  of  the  sun  during 
the  first  five  days,  which  explains  the  blanket  often 
hung  before  the  doorway;  nor  may  she  put  on  her 
moccasins,  for  fear  of  ill  luck. 

At  last,  on  the  evening  of  the  nineteenth  day,  comes 
the  paternal  grandmother,  who,  by  custom,  is  the  mis 
tress  of  ceremonies,  a  fact  which  seems  a  little  strange, 
for  though  the  child  takes  its  descent  from  the  mother, 
the  father's  people  name  the  baby  and  conduct  the  cer 
emony.  The  grandmother  sees  to  the  fire  and  attends 
to  the  stew  of  mutton  with  shelled  corn,  called  nu- 
kivibi,  and  the  sweet  corn  pudding,  called  pigame, 
cooking  for  the  feast  in  the  morning.  While  she  is 
bustling  about,  boiling  a  tea  of  juniper  twigs,  placing  a 
few  stones  in  the  fire  to  heat  for  use  in  the  morning, 
and  pounding  soaproot,  the  relatives  are  bringing 
plaques  of  basketwork  heaped  with  fine  meal  as  pres 
ents  to  the  new-born.  These  the  mother  receives  with 
the  woman's  words  of  thanks,  eskwali  —  the  men's 
word  being  kiva  kivi  —  and  invites  the  guests  to  par 
take  of  food.  It  is  late  when  the  relatives  depart,  and 
the  mother  busies  herself  with  getting  ready  the  return 
presents,  adding,  perhaps,  with  a  generous  hand,  more 
than  was  given,  while  the  object  of  all  this  prepara 
tion  is  sleeping  oblivious,  hidden  beneath  his  blanket. 

At  the  first  glint  of  dawn  the  godmother  arises, 


116  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

renews  the  fire,  and  draws  with  fine  meal  four  short 
parallel  lines  on  the  walls,  floor,  and  ceiling  of  the 
room,  and  on  the  lines  on  the  floor  puts  a  prayer 
feather  tied  to  a  cotton  string,  and  above  that  places 
a  bowl  of  amole  suds.  The  mother  kneels  by  the 
bowl,  her  long  black  hair  falling  in  the  foam,  and  the 
godmother  dips  an  ear  of  corn  in  the  suds  four  times 
and  touches  each  time  the  head  of  the  mother  with 
the  end,  then  bathes  her  head.  Perhaps  others  of 
the  guests  who  have  come  early  for  the  ceremony  use 
the  suds  in  turn  with  an  idea  of  getting  some  imag 
inary  benefit;  the  practical  benefit  of  cleanliness  is 
obtained  at  any  rate.  The  mother's  arms  and  legs 
are  bathed  in  the  juniper  tea ;  the  heated  stones  placed 
in  a  cracked  bowl  and  some  of  the  tea  thrown  over 
them,  form  an  impromptu  sweat  bath,  while  she  stands, 
wrapped  in  a  blanket,  over  the  steam.  This  finishes 
the  part  of  the  ceremony  designed  for  purification. 

The  old  woman  carefully  sweeps  up  the  room  and 
puts  all  the  sweepings  in  a  bowl  which  she  throws 
over  the  mesa,  while  another  woman  sprinkles  water 
on  the  floor,  saying,  "clouds  and  rain,"  the  two 
magic  words  which  are  often  on  the  lips  and  in  their 
thoughts.  Now  the  baby  is  waked  from  his  blissful 
sleep,  bathed  in  soapsuds,  and  rinsed  with  a  mouthful 
of  water  applied  in  the  manner  of  a  Chinese  laundry- 
man.  This  time  it  is  not  ashes  but  white  corn  meal 
with  which  he  is  rubbed,  and  all  the  company  nib 
suds  on  his  head  with  ears  of  corn  dipped  in  the 
wash  bowl.  The  godmother  puts  meal  on  the  baby's 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  117 

face  and  neck,  and,  waving  an  ear  of  corn,  prays  over 
the  mother  and  child.  This  is  the  prayer:  "May 
you  live  to  be  old,  may  you  have  good  corn,  may  you 
keep  well,  and  now  I  name  you  Samiwiki,"  ("roasting 
ears"),  or  she  bestows  any  name  which  strikes  her 
fancy.  All  the  other  relatives  give  the  baby  a  name 
and  it  is  a  matter  of  chance  which  one  survives. 

The  naming  of  the  baby  being  ended,  the  dedica 
tion  of  the  child  to  the  sun  is  next  in  order.  As  a 
preliminary,  the  baby  is  introduced  to  the  hard  lot 
of  the  cradle.  The  cradle  may  be  a  bent  stick  inter 
laced  with  twigs,  a  cushion  of  frayed  juniper  bark 
placed  on  it  and  a  bow  attached  to  the  upper  end  to 
protect  the  baby 's  face.  A  small  blanket  or  two  form 
the  covering.  The  mother  tucks  the  little  fellow  in, 
placing  his  arms  straight  along  his  sides  and  finishes 
by  lashing  him  round  and  round  with  a  sash  until  he 
resembles  a  miniature  mummy.  The  godmother  has 
not  been  idle  meanwhile.  She  has  taken  meal  and 
made  a  white  path  out  the  door,  and  at  a  signal  from 
the  father,  who  has  been  anxiously  watching  for  sun 
rise  from  a  neighboring  housetop,  she  quickly  takes 
up  the  cradle  and  carries  it  low  down  over  the  path  of 
meal,  out  to  where  the  sun  may  be  seen.  The  women 
have  put  on  their  clean  mantas,  the  mother  has  ar 
rayed  herself  in  her  embroidered  cotton  wedding 
blanket,  and  they  stand  in  the  clear  dawn,  a  pic 
turesque  group  of  sun-worshippers.  The  godmother 
draws  away  the  blanket  from  the  baby's  face,  holds 
a  handful  of  meal  to  her  mouth,  and  says  a  short 


118  MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND 

prayer  over  it  and  throws  it  toward  the  sun ;  so  also 
does  the  mother,  and  the  ceremony  is  over. 

The  assembly  then  turns  to  the  nukuribi>  pigame, 
and  other  good  things,  for  among  the  Hopi  a  feast  al 
ways  follows  a  ceremony,  just  as  enlightened  people 
enjoy  a  good  dinner  after  church ;  hut  before  they  be 
gin  the  repast,  a  pinch  of  the  food  must  be  taken  out 
and  thrown  by  the  ladder  or  into  an  inner  room  as  an 
offering  to  the  sun.  The  baby,  being  guest  of  honor, 
is  first  to  eat  of  the  food,  though  the  act  would  seem 
a  mere  pretense.  Directly  he  is  laid  aside  to  resume 
his  broken  slumbers  while  all  assembled  fall  to  with 
keen  appetites.  Soon  the  guests  arise  to  depart,  and 
receiving  their  " Indian  gifts"  return  to  their  homes. 

Custom  demands,  however,  that  other  things  for 
the  welfare  of  the  child  be  done.  A  boy  should  have 
a  swift  insect  called  bimonmtfi  tied  to  his  wrist  to 
make  him  a  runner,  and  a  girl  a  cocoon  of  a  butterfly 
to  make  her  wrists  strong  for  grinding  corn.  Later, 
for  some  reason,  a  band  of  yucca  is  put  on  the  child's 
wrist  and  ankle  and  left  on  for  several  days,  when 
the  child  is  held  over  an  ant  hill,  the  bands  taken  off 
and  left  to  the  ants. 

It  is  pleasant  to  know  that  the  Hopi  are  good  to 
the  old.  In  the  ceremony  just  described  they  are 
given  special  gifts  of  food  and  meal,  and  if  the  grand 
mother  is  an  invalid  she  is  tenderly  carried  to  the 
dedication.1 


i  From  Natal  Ceremonies  of  the  Hopi  Indians.     J.  G.  Owens, 
Journal  of  American  Ethnology  and  Archaeology,  Vol.  II,  1892. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  119 

When  the  number  of  children  born  is  considered, 
there  seems  to  be  no  reason  why  the  Hopi  should  not 
soon  have  a  dense  population,  instead  of  remaining 
stationary.  When  more  is  known,  though,  of  the  un 
ripe  melons  and  other  green  things  given  the  children 
to  eat  at  their  own  sweet  will,  the  wonder  is  that  any 
of  them  ever  reach  the  years  of  discretion.  It  is  a 
wise  provision  of  custom  that  the  children  are  not 
required  to  wear  any  clothes  whatever,  and  one  soon 
becomes  accustomed  to  the  graceful,  animated  little 
bronzes  that  swarm  in  the  quaint,  terraced  pueblos. 

Nowhere  are  these  little  flowers  of  the  tree  of  life 
more  cunning  and  interesting.  Like  the  Japanese 
children  they  seem  to  deserve  no  correction,  and  it  is 
as  rare  a  sight  as  green  grass,  in  the  land  of  Tusayan, 
to  see  a  parent  strike  a  child.  Always  instead  there  is 
kindness  and  affection  worthy  of  the  highest  praise. 
It  is  refreshing  to  observe  the  association  of  children 
with  their  parents  or  near  relatives,  and  how  quiet 
arid  obedient  they  are.  This  close  parental  attention 
must  be  the  secret  of  good  children  wherever  the 
country  may  be.  The  Hopi  children  are  fortunate  in 
having  many  teachers  who,  at  home  or  in  the  fields 
or  in  the  country,  explain  to  them  the  useful  things 
which  they  should  know  in  order  to  become  good 
citizens  of  Tusayan.  It  surprises  visitors  to  find  out 
how  much  the  little  people  have  learned,  not  only  of 
the  birds,  plants,  and  other  sides  of  nature,  but  of 
their  future  duties  in  the  house,  the  fields,  and  the  vil- 


120 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 


lage,  and  one  comes  to  respect  the  Hopi  kindergarten 
in  which  the  children  are  taught  through  play-work 
and  unconsciously  come  to  "know  how."  Even  the 
odd-looking  dolls,  which  the  Hopi  children  love  with 
the  same  fervor  as  the  rest  of  the  little  men  and  women 
of  the  child  world,  assist  in  teaching.  These  dolls, 
carved  from  cotton  wood  and  brilliantly  decorated 
with  paint,  feathers,  and  shells,  represent  the  numer 
ous  beings  who  inhabit  the  spiritual  world  supposed 
to  rule  the  destinies  of  the  Hopi.  The  children  are 
given  these  wooden  figures  to  play  with,  and  thus  they 
learn  the  appearance  of  the  gods  and  at  the  same 
time  get  a  lesson  in  mythology. 

In  their  sport,  several  little  fellows  armed  with 
bows  and  arrows  may  pretend  to  guard  the  pueblo, 
and  no  doubt  they  have  the  same  proud  feeling  in 
possessing  these  savage  weapons  of  war  as  a  small 
white  boy  has  when  master  of  a  toy  gun.  Little  tots 
scarcely  able  to  walk  will  be  encouraged  to  shoot  at  a 
target  made  of  a  bundle  of  sage-brush  set  up  in  the 
sand  at  no  great  distance,  and  loud  is  the  applause 
from  the  parents  and  other  onlookers  when  one  of 
these  infants  bowls  over  the  target.  The  girls  con 
gregate  in  a  secluded  street  and  play,  their  soft  voices 
quite  in  contrast  with  any  such  group  of  white  chil 
dren.  Perhaps  the  game  is  "play  house,"  with  the 
help  of  a  few  stones  and  much  imagination.  The 
moment,  however,  a  visitor  casts  his  eye  in  their 
direction  the  game  is  broken  up  and  all  become  pain- 


* 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  121 

fully  conscious  of  his  presence.  Should  a  rain  fill  the 
water  holes  on  the  mesa  the  children  have  great  sport 
bathing,  splashing  around  like  ducks  and  chasing  one 
another.  This  must  be  a  rare  treat  to  the  children, 
because,  like  Christmas,  the  good  fortune  of  a  rain 
water  bath  may  come  but  once  a  year. 

Wherever  the  grown  people  go,  the  children  go 
along,  berrying,  gathering  grass  and  yucca  for  bas 
kets,  or  seeds  of  the  wild  plants  for  food,  watching 
the  confield,  or  gathering  the  crops,  each  having  a 
little  share  in  the  work  and  a  good  portion  of  amuse 
ment.  One  soon  sees  that  the  children  of  the  Hopi 
help  in  everything  that  is  going  on  and  take  care  not 
to  hinder.  If  a  house  is  being  built,  the  little  ones 
work  as  hard  as  their  elders,  carrying  in  their  bas 
kets  a  tiny  load  of  stones  or  earth  for  the  building 
with  an  earnestness  that  is  really  amusing.  Outside 
of  the  Hopi  towns  one  usually  finds  a  number  of  in 
scriptions  in  picture  writing  on  the  rocks.  Besides 
the  inscriptions  there  are  many  cup-shaped  depressions 
that  have  puzzled  more  than  one  visitor.  One  day 
some  children  were  seen  hammering  diligently  on  the 
rocks  with  hand-stones,  and  it  was  found  that  they 
were  digging  cup-cavities  in  the  soft  sandstone,  per 
haps  making  tiny  play-reservoirs  to  catch  rain  water. 
The  children  may  also  be  responsible  for  many  of  the 
queer  pictures  that  adorn  the  smooth  sides  of  the  rocks 
around  the  villages;  and  who  knows  but  that  many 
ancient  inscriptions  on  the  Arizona  rocks  were  cut 
by  childish  hands. 


122  MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND 

In  every  Hopi  child's  life  the  time  comes  when  he 
must  join  some  one  of  the  brotherhoods  or  societies, 
which  take  in  nearly  every  one  in  the  pueblos,  so  that 
a  young  man  to  have  any  standing  must  belong  to 
one  at  least  of  the  Kachina  brotherhoods.  The  boys 
during  their  solemn  initiation  are  soundly  whipped 
by  the  ' '  flogger, ' '  whose  name  need  but  be  mentioned 
to  the  little  ones  to  make  them  scamper. 

But  this  takes  us  beyond  the  age  of  tender  child 
hood  in  the  children's  Paradise.  To  a  children's 
friend  the  Hopi  tots  are  a  perennial  joy.  Their 
bright,  eyes  are  full  of  appreciation,  though  bashful- 
ness  may  make  them  hide  behind  mother's  skirts,  but 
there  is  a  magic  word  they  have  learned  from  the 
white  people  which  overcomes  that.  A  picture  still 
dwells  in  the  writer's  mind  of  a  little  fellow  who 
approached  some  visitors  as  near  as  he  dared  and 
spoke  the  two  words  of  English  he  knew:  " Hello, 
kente"  (candy). 

Although  the  ceremony  of  marriage  is  of  small  im 
portance  in  comparison  with  the  endless  ceremonies  of 
the  Hopi  priesthoods,  yet  a  great  deal  of  interest 
clusters  around  it  and  it  is  really  a  complicated  af 
fair.  The  trying  antecedent  stage  of  courtship,  so 
amusing  to  those  not  concerned,  is  the  same  as  among 
civilized  young  men  and  maidens.  One  of  the  first 
questions  Hopi  women  ask  one  is,  "Have  you  a  wife?" 
and  if  the  answer  is  negative,  they  express  condolence 
and  sympathy,  if  they  do  not  go  so  far  as  to  inquire 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  123 

the  reason.  As  elsewhere,  the  young  man  must  show 
some  possession  and  likewise  an  ability  to  provide  be 
fore  he  can  take  the  step  of  matrimony,  and  of  course, 
the  most  inflexible  rule  of  all  those  which  regulate 
the  affairs  in  Hopiland  is  observed  in  making  the 
choice  of  a  wife  —  the  absolute  prohibition  against 
marriage  between  members  of  the  same  clan.  If  both 
have  the  totem  of  the  tobacco  plant,  for  instance,  it 
would  be  hopeless  to  think  of  union  even  if  it  were 
imaginable  that  such  a  thing  would  ever  enter  a 
Hopi's  thoughts.  There  may  be  no  relationship,  but 
if  the  clan  name  is  the  same,  there  is  an  effectual  bar. 

One  of  the  sure  signs  that  matters  are  going  smooth 
ly  is  when  a  girl  is  seen  combing  a  young  man  ?s  hair, 
seated  perhaps  in  the  doorway  where  all  the  world 
may  stare.  This  is  taken  to  mean  a  betrothal,  but 
long  before  this  in  a  community  where  everyone's 
business  is  known,  the  "  match "  has  been  no  secret. 
Hopi  courtship  presents  advantages.  No  prospective- 
ly  irate  parents  have  to  be  asked ;  the  Peaceful  People 
do  not  put  thorns  in  the  path  of  true  love,  but  let 
things  adjust  themselves  in  a  simple,  natural  way. 
There  are  no  first  families  with  pride  of  birth  or 
wealth,  no  exclusive  circles  or  cliques,  there  is  no  bar 
except  the  totem  in  this  perfect  democracy. 

When  the  young  people  decide  to  be  married,  the 
girl  informs  her  mother,  who  takes  her  daughter,  bear 
ing  a  tray  of  meal  made  from  white  corn,  to  the  house 
of  the  bridegroom  where  she  is  received  by  his  mother 


124  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

with  thanks.  During  that  day  she  must  labor  at  the 
mealing  stones,  grinding  white  com,  silent  and  un 
noticed  ;  the  next  day  she  must  continue  her  task  with 
the  white  corn.  On  the  third  day  of  this  laborious 
trial  she  grinds  the  dark  blue  corn  which  the  Hopi 
call  black,  no  doubt  glad  when  the  evening  brings  a 
group  of  her  friends,  laden  with  trays  of  meal  of  their 
own  grinding,  as  presents,  and  according  to  custom, 
these  presents  are  returned  in  kind,  the  trays  being 
sent  back  next  day  heavy  with  choice  ears  of  corn. 

After  this  three  days'  probation,  which  would  indi 
cate  that  a  Hopi  maiden  must  be  very  devoted  t( 
undertake  it,  comes  the  wedding.  Upon  that  day,  tin 
mother  cuts  the  bride's  front  hair  at  the  level  oi 
her  chin  and  dresses  the  longer  locks  in  two  coils 
which  she  must  always  wear  over  her  breast  to  givt 
token  that  she  is  no  longer  a  maiden.  At  the  dawn  oi' 
the  fourth  day  the  relatives  of  both  families  assemble, 
each  one  bringing  a  small  quantity  of  water  in  a 
vessel.  The  two  mothers  pound  up  roots  of  the  yucca 
used  as  soap  and  prepare  two  bowls  of  foaming  suds. 
The  young  man  kneels  before  the  bowl  prepared  by 
his  future  mother-in-law  as  the  bride  before  the  bowl 
of  the  young  man 's  mother,  and  their  heads  are  thor 
oughly  washed  and  the  relatives  take  part  by  pouring 
handsful  of  suds  over  the  bowed  heads  of  the  couple. 
While  this  ceremonial  head-washing  is  going  on,  some 
of  the  women  and  girls  creep  in  between  the  couple 
and  try  to  hold  their  heads  over  the  bowls  while  others 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  125 

strive  to  tear  away  the  intruders,  and  a  great  deal  of 
jollity  ensues.  When  the  head- washing  is  over  the 
visitors  rinse  the  hair  of  the  couple  with  the  water 
they  have  brought,  and  return  home.  Then  the  bridal 
couple  each  takes  a  pinch  of  corn-meal  and  leaving 
the  house  go  silently  to  the  eastern  side  of  the  mesa 
on  which  the  pueblo  of  Oraibi  stands.  Holding  the 
meal  to  their  lips,  they  cast  the  meal  toward  the 
dawn,  breathing  a  prayer  for  a  long  and  prosperous 
life,  and  return  to  the  house  as  husband  and  wife. 

The  ceremony  over,  the  mother  of  the  bride  builds 
a  fire  under  the  baking  stone,  while  the  daughter  pre 
pares  the  batter  and  begins  to  bake  a  large  quantity 
of  paper  bread.  After  this  practical  and  beautiful 
starting  of  the  young  folks  in  life  the  mother  returns 
to  her  home.  But  there  is  much  more  to  do  before 
the  newly  married  merge  into  the  staid  married 
folks  of  Tusayan.  The  wedding  breakfast  follows 
closely  on  the  heels  of  the  ceremony  and  the  father  of 
the  young  man  must  run  through  the  pueblo  with  a 
bag  of  cotton,  handfuls  of  which  he  gives  to  the  rela 
tives  and  friends,  who  pick  out  the  seeds  and  return 
the  cotton  to  him.  This  cotton  is  for  the  wedding 
blankets  and  sash  which  are  to  be  the  trousseau  of 
the  bride. 

The  practical  side  and  the  mutual  helpfulness  of 
the  Hopi  come  out  strongly  here,  when  a  few  days 
later  the  loud-voiced  crier  announces  the  time  for  the 
spinning  of  the  cotton  for  the  bride's  blankets.  This 


126  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

takes  place  in  the  kivas,  where  usually  all  the  weaving 
is  done  by  the  man,  and  with  jollity  and  many  a  story 
the  task  is  soon  finished.  The  spun  cotton  is  handed 
over  to  the  bridegroom  as  a  contribution  from  the 
village,  to  be  paid  for,  like  everything  else  Hopi,  by  a 
sumptuous  feast  which  has  been  prepared  by  the 
women  for  the  spinners.  Perhaps  ten  sagebrush-fed 
sheep  and  goats,  tough  beyond  reason,  are  bein^ 
softened  in  a  stew,  consisting  mainly  of  corn;  stacks 
of  paper  bread  have  been  baked ;  various  other  dishen 
have  been  concocted,  and  all  is  ready  when  the  crie'* 
calls  in  the  hungry  multitude.  They  fall  to,  like  the 
genius  of  famine,  without  knives  and  forks,  but  with 
active,  though  not  over-clean  digits,  at  the  start 
When  they  are  through,  there  is  little  left  for  the 
gaunt,  half -starved  dogs  that  scent  the  savors  of  the 
feast  outside  the  door.  If  one  desires  to  see  the  Hopi 
at  his  happiest  he  must  find  him  squatted  on  the  floor 
before  an  ample  and  well-spread  feast. 

With  the  spun  cotton  serious  work  begins  for  the 
bridegroom  and  his  male  relatives  lasting  several 
weeks.  A  large  white  blanket  five  by  six  feet  and  one 
four  and  a  half  by  five  feet  must  be  woven,  and  a 
reed  mat  made  in  which  the  blankets  are  to  be  rolled. 
A  white  sash  with  long  fringe,  and  a  pair  of  moccasins, 
each  having  half  a  deerskin  for  leggings,  like  those 
worn  by  the  women  of  the  Rio  Grande  pueblos,  com 
plete  the  costume.  The  blankets  must  have  elaborate 
tassels  at  the  four  corners.  Shortly  before  sunrise 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  127 

the  bride,  arrayed  in  her  finery,  performs  the  last 
act  in  the  drama,  called  ''going  home."  It  must  be 
explained  that  up  to  this  time  the  bride  has  remained 
in  the  house  of  her  husband's  people.  Wearing  the 
large  white  blanket  picturesquely  disposed  over  her 
head  and  carrying  the  small  blanket  wrapped  in  the 
reed  mat  in  her  hands,  she  walks  to  her  mother 's  house, 
where  she  is  received  with  a  few  words  of  greeting, 
and  the  long  ceremony  is  over. 

In  this  land  of  women's  rights  the  husband  must 
live  with  his  wife's  relatives.  The  children,  also,  are 
hers,  taking  their  descent  from  her  and  are  nearer 
kin  to  her  brothers  and  sisters  than  to  the  father. 
The  house  they  live  in  is  hers,  and  all  the  corn  and 
other  food  brought  into  its  grain  room.  In  case  of 
domestic  troubles,  she  alone  has  the  right  of  separa 
tion  and  can  turn  the  man  from  her  door.  Though 
this  dark  side  of  the  picture  is  sometimes  presented, 
the  rule  is  that  husband  and  wife  are  faithful  and 
live  happily,  as  becomes  the  Peaceful  People. 

It  may  be  interesting  to  follow  the  history  of  the 
wedding  costume,  which  plays  such  a  prominent  part 
in  the  ceremony.  The  moccasins  are  soon  put  to  use 
and  worn  out,  and  thereafter  the  woman  goes  barefoot 
like  the  rest  of  her  sisters.  The  sash  and  blankets 
are  rolled  in  a  mat  and  hung  from  a  roof -beam  in  a 
back  room.  Perhaps  the  larger  /blanket  is  embroid 
ered,  when  it  becomes  a  ceremonial  blanket,  or  it  may 
be  pressed  into  use  for  carrying  corn  and  watermelons 


128  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

from  the  fields.  The-? smaller  blanket  is  kept  as  one 
of  the  most  sacred  possessions;  the  young  mother 
puts  it  on  only  at  the  name-giving  ceremony  of  her 
first-born,  and  often  it  enshrouds  her  for  the  last  rites 
among  the  rocks  below  the  mesa  where  the  dead  are 
laid  away.  At  the  farewell  ceremony  of  the  Kachinas 
all  the  brides  of  the  year  dress  in  their  white  robes 
and  appear  among  the  spectators,  look  on  for  a  tin  e, 
and  then  return  to  their  homes.  This  review  of  tie 
brides  adds  much  to  the  picturesqueness  of  this  fes 
tive  occasion.1 

There  is  no  doubt  that  to  the  wise  customs  of  tie 
pueblo  dwellers  is  due  their  survival  in  the  deserts 
of  the  Southwest.  One  can  only  admire  the  work 
ings  of  the  unwritten  laws  which  have  lived  from 
out  of  the  experience  of  past  centuries  and  continue 
yet  to  regulate  the  life  of  Tusayan. 

There  is  no  more  interesting  chapter  of  human 
beliefs  than  that  which  deals  with  the  ideas  enter 
tained  by  primitive  peoples  of  death  and  the  here 
after.  The  Hopi,  like  other  peoples,  have  thought 
out  the  deep  questions  of  origin  and  destiny,  peopled 
the  mysterious  spaces  with  spiritual  beings,  and  pene 
trated  the  realm  of  the  hereafter  to  describe  the  life 
after  death.  Thus  they  say  that  the  breath  body 
travels  and  has  various  experiences  on  its  way  to  the 

2  The  details  of  the  marriage  ceremony  are  taken  from  an 
article  by  H.  R.  Voth  in  the  American  Anthropologist,  1ST.  S., 
Vol.  2,  No.  2,  April-June,  1900. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  129 

underworld,  and  "as  everyone  came  up  from  out  of 
the  sipapu,  or  earth  navel,  so  through  the  sipapu  to 
the  underworld  of  spirits  must  he  go  after  death. 
Far  to  the  west  in  the  track  of  the  sun  must  he  travel 
to  the  sipapu  which  leads  down  through  a  lake.  Food 
must  he  have  for  the  journey,  and  money  of  shell  and 
green  turquoise;  hence  bowls  of  food  and  treasures 
we  place  in  his  grave.  Masauah,  the  ruler  of  the  un 
derworld,  first  receives  the  spirit.  It  is  the  spirit  of  a 
good  man,  straightway  he  speeds  it  along  the  pathway 
of  the  sun  to  the  happy  abode,  where  the  ancestors 
feast  and  dance  and  hold  ceremonies  like  those  of  the 
Hopi  on  the  earth.  Truly,  we  received  the  ceremon 
ies  from  them,  long  ago. 

If  the  spirit  is  not  good,  it  must  be  tried,  so  Masauah 
sends  it  on  to  the  keeper  of  the  first  furnace  in  which 
the  spirit  is  placed.  Should  it  come  out  clean,  forth 
with  it  is  free;  if  not,  on  it  goes  to  a  second  or  a 
third  master  of  the  furnace,  but  if  the  third  fire  test 
ing  does  not  cleanse  the  spirit,  the  demon  seizes  it  and 
destroys  it,  because  it  is  posh  kalolomi,  "very  not 
good!"  Just  how  much  of  this  has  been  influenced 
by  later  teachings  is  a  vexed  question  and  must  be  left 
open. 

In  the  underworld  the  spirits  of  the  ancestors  are 
represented  as  living  a  life  of  perennial  enjoyment. 
Often  they  visit  the  upperworld,  and  since  the  Hopi 
believe  that  their  chief  care  is  to  guard  the  interests 
of  the  pueblos  of  Tusayan,  they  must  be  appeased  by 


130  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

prayers  and  offerings  in  order  to  secure  their  goc<i 
will. 

The  last  offices  of  the  dead  are  very  simple.  In 
sitting  posture  with  head  between  the  knees,  with 
cotton  mask,  symbolic  of  the  rain  cloud,  over  the 
face,  and  sewed  fast  in  a  ceremonial  blanket,  the  body 
is  carried  down  among  the  rocks  by  two  men,  who 
have  cleared  out  a  place  with  their  hoes.  The  rela 
tives  follow  and  without  a  word  the  body  is  placed 
in  the  rude  grave.  A  bowl  containing  food  is  sot 
near  by  under  the  rocks,  and  all  return,  the  women 
washing  their  feet  before  entering  the  house. 

For  four  days  the  relatives  visit  the  grave  and  place 
upon  it  bowls  containing  morsels  of  food,  and  they 
also  deposit  there  feathered  prayer-sticks.  At  the  end 
of  four  days  the  " breath  body"  descends  to  the  under 
world,  whence  it  came,  and  is  judged  by  the  ordeal  of 
fire.  In  a  closely-built  town  like  Walpi  the  house  is 
not  vacated  after  a  death,  but  it  would  seem  that  this 
widespread  custom  is  observed  in  some  of  the  pueblos. 
The  Navaho,  in  pursuance  of  this  custom,  throw  down 
the  earth-covered  hogan  over  the  dead,  and  in  the 
course  of  time  a  mound  filled  with  decaying  timbers 
marks  the  spot.  Hopi  burial  customs  have  not  changed 
for  centuries;  they  have  never  burned  their  dead,  as 
formerly  did  the  Zuni  and  the  peoples  of  the  Grila  val 
ley.  The  ancient  Hopi  ceremonies  contain  almost  the 
only  records  of  their  past  history  in  the  pottery,  orna 
ments,  weapons,  and  relics  of  bone,  shell,  stone,  traces 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  131 

of  prayer-sticks,  cloth,  baskets,  and  matting.  These 
serve  to  give  an  idea  of  the  life  and  arts  of  the  ancient 
Americans  who  left  no  written  record. 

When  one  inquires  for  a  person  who,  perchance,  is 
dead,  the  Hopi  say  he  is  shttui,  which  means,  ' '  gone. ' ' 
On  closer  inquiry  they  may  tell  of  the  mysterious 
journey  of  the  dead,  through  the  sipapu,  to  the  land 
of  the  underworld,  which  is  below  the  far-off  lake. 


VII 
RELIGIOUS  LIFE 

The  chief  feature  attracting  popular  interest  to  the 
Hopi  is  the  number  and  remarkable  character  of  their 
ceremonies.  These  "dances,"  as  they  are  usually 
called,  seem  to  be  going  on  with  little  intermission. 
Every  Hopi  is  touched  by  some  one  of  the  numerous 
ceremonies  and  nearly  every  able-bodied  inhabitant  of 
the  seven  towns  takes  an  active  part  during  the  yeaj*. 

This  keeps  the  Hopi  out  of  mischief  and  gives  them 
a  good  reputation  for  minding  their  own  business,  bo- 
sides  furnishing  them  with  the  best  round  of  free 
theatrical  entertainments  enjoyed  by  any  people  in 
the  world,  for  nearly  every  ceremony  has  its  divert 
ing  as  well  as  its  serious  side,  for  religion  and  the 
drama  are  here  united  as  in  primitive  times.  The 
Hopi  live  and  move  and  have  their  being  in  religion. 
They  have  peopled  the  unseen  world  with  a  host  of  be 
ings,  and  they  view  all  na.ture  as  full  of  life.  The 
sun,  moon,  stars,  rocks,  winds,  rain,  and  rivers  are 
members  of  the  Hopi  pantheon  to  be  reckoned  with  in 
their  complicated  worship. 

Every  moon  brings  its  ceremony,  and  the  cycle  of 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  133 

the  different  "dances"  is  completed  in  perhaps  four 
years ;  a  few  dances  indeed  may  have  even  longer  in 
tervals,  but  these  dances  do  not  seem  to  fall  in  the  cal 
endar  and  are  held  whenever  decided  upon  by  the 
proper  chief.  Some  of  the  dances  alternate  also,  the 
Snake  Dance,  for  instance,  being  held  one  year  and  the 
Flute  Dance  the  following  year.  For  half  the  year, 
from  August  to  January,  the  actors  in  the  ceremonies 
wear  masks,  while  for  the  remainder  of  the  year  the 
dancers  appear  unmasked ;  and  as  every  ceremony  has 
its  particular  costumes,  ritual,  and  songs,  there  is 
great  variety  for  the  looker-on  in  Tusayan.  So  many 
are  the  ceremonies,  which  differ  more  or  less  in  the 
different  villages,  and  so  overwhelming  is  the  im 
memorial  detail  of  their  performance,  that  one  might 
well  despair  of  recording  them,  much  less  of  finding 
out  a  tithe  of  their  meaning. 

There  is  grouped  around  these  dances  the  lore  of 
clans  in  the  bygone  centuries,  innumerable  songs  and 
prayers  and  rites  gathered  up  here  and  there  in  the 
weary  march,  strewn  with  shells  of  old  towns  of  the 
forgotten  days.  No  fear  that  this  inexhaustible  mine 
will  be  delved  out  by  investigators  before  it  disap 
pears  utterly;  the  wonder  is  that  it  has  survived  so 
long  into  this  prosaic  age  of  anti-fable.  "We  have  here 
the  most  complete  Freemasonry  in  the  world,  which, 
if  preserved,  would  form  an  important  chapter  in  the 
history  of  human  cults,  and  in  the  opinion  of  enlight 
ened  men,  it  should  have  a  record  before  the  march 
of  civilization  treads  it  in  the  dust. 


134  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

The  searcher  for  truth  at  the  bottom  of  the  Hopi 
well  is  likely  to  get  various  answers.  Seeing  the  im 
portance  of  the  sun  in  Hopi  thoughts  and  rites,  one 
feels  inclined  to  say  "sun  worship,"  but  the  clouds, 
wind,  rain,  rocks,  springs,  rivers  that  enter  into  tins 
paganism  make  for  "nature  worship";  then  the  birds 
and  beasts  give  "animal  worship" ;  the  plants  for  food 
and  ceremony,  "plant  worship";  the  snake  meaiis 
"serpent  worship,"  and  the  communion  with  deified 
ancestors  shows  "ancestor  worship"  with  unmistak 
able  plainness. 

The  oldest  gods  in  the  Hopi  conception  of  the  un 
seen  world  are  the  deified  manifestations  of  Natm-e 
and  the  natural  objects  that  force  themselves  to  h:s 
notice.  The  lightning,  the  cloud,  the  wind,  the  snow, 
the  rain,  the  water,  the  rainbow,  the  dawn,  the  firo, 
all  are  beings.  The  sun,  the  moon,  certain  planets 
and  constellations,  and  the  sky  are  beings  of  power.- 
The  surface  of  the  earth  is  ruled  by  a  mighty  being 
whose  sway  extends  to  the  underworld  and  over  death, 
fire,  and  the  fields;  springs,  rivers,  and  mountains 
have  their  presiding  deities.  Among  animals  also 
there  are  many  gods,  —  the  eagle,  bear,  deer,  moun 
tain  lion,  badger,  coyote,  and  mole  among  the  resl. 
Among  the  insects  the  butterfly,  dragonfly,  and  spider 
are  most  important,  the  latter  as  the  Spider  Woman 
or  Earth  Goddess.  She  is  spouse  of  the  Sun  and  as 
mother  of  the  warrior  culture  heroes  of  the  race  is 
revered  by  the  Hopi.  To  the  plants,  however,  the  list 


MESA  POLK  OF  HOPILAND  135 

of  beings  does  not  extend,  except  in  few  instances,  as 
the  Corn  Maid  or  Goddess  of  Corn,  and  perhaps  to  the 
Goddess  of  Gerins.  There  are  beings  of  the  six  direc 
tions  ;  a  god  of  chance  in  games  and  of  barter ;  gods  of 
war  and  the  chase ;  a  god  of  the  oven,  and  endless  be 
ings,  good  and  bad,  that  have  arisen  in  the  Hopi  fancy 
as  the  centuries  rolled  by  with  their  changes  of  cul 
ture. 

At  some  period  a  group  of  beings  called  Kachinas 
and  new  to  Hopi  worship  was  added  to  the  pantheon. 
Most  of  these  were  brought  in  by  the  Badger  clans,  as 
tradition  relates,  from  the  East,  which  means  the  up 
per  Rio  Grande,  and  some  were  probably  introduced 
during  the  great  westward  migrations  of  other  clans 
from  that  region.  The  KacMnas  are  believed  to  be  the 
spirits  of  ancestors  in  some  part,  but  the  Kachina  wor 
ship  is  remarkable  for  the  diversity  of  beings  that  it 
includes,  from  the  representation  of  a  tribe  as  the 
Apache  Kachina,  to  the  nature  beings  as  the  sun,  but 
many  of  them  are  not  time  Kachinas.  (See  Chapter  X, 
Intiwa,  p.  227) 

As  might  be  anticipated  from  the  fact  that  the  Hopi 
are  made  up  of  clans  and  fragments  of  clans  of  vari 
ous  origin,  each  with  its  separate  ideas  and  practices, 
their  beliefs  and  customs  as  to  the  unseen  world  show 
a  surprising  variety  and  include  those  of  lower  and 
higher  comparative  rank.  One  idea,  however,  run 
ning  through  all  the  ceremonies  gives  a  clue  to  their 
intention,  obvious  to  any  man  of  the  Southwest,  be  his 


136  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

skin  white  or  brown,  the  desire  for  rain  so  there  shall 
be  food  and  life.  To  wheedling,  placating,  or  coercir  g 
the  agencies  which  are  thought  to  have  power  to  bring 
rain  all  the  energies  of  the  Hopi  are  bent.  Included 
among  these  petitions  are  prayers  for  other  things 
that  seem  good  and  desirable,  and  the  ceremonies  also 
embrace  such  episodes  as  the  installing  of  a  chief,  or 
the  initiation  of  novitiates,  the  hunts,  races,  etc. 

From  these  ceremonies,  which  fall  under  one  or  the 
other  of  the  thirteen  moons,  we  may  select  the  more 
striking  for  a  brief  description  of  their  more  salient 
features. 

No  one  can  determine  which  ceremony  begins  the 
Hopi  calendar,  but  perhaps  the  Soyaluna,  celebrated 
at  the  last  of  December,  should  have  the  honor.  Not 
because  it  nearly  coincides  with  our  Christmas,  but  be 
cause  it  marks  the  astronomical  period  known  as  the 
winter  solstice,  an  important  date  which  ought  by 
right  to  begin  the  new  year.  Few  strangers  see  the 
Soyaluna,  but  those  who  have  braved  the  winter  to  be 
present  say  that  it  is  one  of  the  most  remarkable  of 
the  Hopi  ceremonies.  All  the  kivas  are  in  use  by  the 
various  societies  taking  part,  and  while  there  is  only  a 
simple  public  "dance,"  there  are  dramatic  observ 
ances  of  surprising  character  going  on  in  the  meeting 
places. 

When  the  faint  winter  sun  descends  into  his  '  *  south 
house,"  which  is  a  notch  in  the  Elden  Mesa  near  Flag 
staff,  there  is  great  activity  in  the  Hopi  pueblos,  and 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  137 

as  in  our  holiday  season  the  people  exchange  greet 
ings  of  good  wishes  and  make  presents  of  nakwakwo- 
shi,  consisting  of  a  downy  eagle  feather  and  long  pine 
needles  tied  to  a  cotton  string.  December  is  a  sacred 
month  when  all  occupations  are  limited  and  few  games 
are  allowed,  so  that  the  Soyal  is  at  the  center  of  a 
"holy  truce,"  a  time  of  "peace  on  earth  and  good 
will  to  men, ' '  but  strangely  celebrated  by  pagan  sun- 
worshippers.  For  the  Soyal  is  peculiarly  a  ceremony 
brought  to  Hopiland  by  the  Patki  people  who  came 
from  the  south  where  in  past  centuries  they  wor-. 
shipped  the  god  of  day.  The  warrior  societies  of  the 
pueblos  have  made  this  their  great  festival  and  are 
most  prominent  in  its  celebration. 

In  the  principal  kiva  the  customary  elaborate  ritual 
has  been  conducted  for  nine  days  by  the  Soyal  fra 
ternity,  which  is  made  up  of  members  of  the  Agave, 
Horn,  Singers,  and  New  Fire  societies.  At  one  end  of 
the  kiva  is  placed  the  altar,  consisting  of  a  frame  with 
parallel  slats  on  which  are  tied  bunches  of  grass,  and 
in  these  bunches  are  thrust  hundreds  of  gaudily  paint 
ed  artificial  flowers.  On  the  top  are  bows  covered 
with  cotton,  representing  snow  clouds.  Before  the 
altar  is  a  pile  of  corn  laid  up  like  a  wall  which  has 
been  collected  in  the  village  to  be  returned  filled  with 
fertility  after  the  ceremony.  Before  the  corn  wall  is 
a  ridge  of  sand  on  which  are  set  corn  fetiches  of  stone 
and  wood.  The  medicine  bowl  and  many  pipes, 
feather  prayer-sticks,  etc.,  are  in  position  on  the  floor. 


138  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

There  is  also  in  the  Walpi  ceremony  a  performance 
of  the  Great  Feathered  Serpent  who  thrusts  his  gro 
tesque  head  through  an  orifice  in  the  screen  and  roars; 
in  answer  to  the  prayers  of  the  priests. 

After  a  series  of  musical  songs  accompanied  bj 
rattles,  flutes,  whistles,  and  bull-roarers,  and  inter 
spersed  with  prayers,  there  is  an  initiation  of  novices 
Then  enters  the  first  bird  man,  elaborately  costumed 
whose  postures  and  pantomime  imitate  a  bird.     Next 
come  another  bird  man  and  the  Soyaluna  maid  who 
perform  a  strange  dance,  then  comes  Eototo,  the  fore 
runner  of  the  Kachina^  bearing  corn,  and  this  episode 
closes  with  a  stirring  dance  of  the  priests  around  the 
fireplace  accompanied  with  song. 

Next  occurs  the  fierce  assault  by  members  from  the 
different  kivas  on  the  Soyal  shield-bearer.  With  wild 
yells  and  dramatic  action  they  thrust  their  shields 
against  the  sun  shield  as  in  deadly  combat,  but  the 
sun  shield-bearer  forces  them  back  and  vanquishes 
them  in  turn.  This  remarkable  drama  represents  per 
haps  the  driving  of  the  sun  back  into  his  northward 
path,  so  tha.t  he  may  bring  life  to  the  Hopi.  The 
Soyal  public  dance  is  performed  by  a  Kachina  and  two 
Kachina  maids  and  is  simple  compared  with  the  elab 
orate,  multicolored  pageant  of  other  dances.  At  the 
close  of  the  public  ceremony  the  corn  is  distributed 
to  the  villagers,  and  for  four  days  consecrated  pahos 
are  placed  in  the  shrines,  some  for  the  dead  and  some 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  139 

for  increase  of  flocks,  corn,  peaches,  and  all  good 
things  spiritual  and  temporal  and  the  people  feast 
and  are  happy. 

In  February  comes  a  ceremony  called  Powamu  with 
its  introductory  ceremony  called  Powalawu.  Some  ex 
pectancy  of  the  coming  activities  in  the  fields  is  in  the 
air  and  hence,  as  the  name  indicates,  the  ceremony  re 
lates  to  getting  ready,  preparing  the  fields,  etc.  One 
of  the  chief  features  is  the  sprouting  of  beans  in  the 
kivas  and  the  distribution  of  the  sprouts  to  various 
persons.  Another  is  the  initiation  of  youthful  candi 
dates,  accompanied  by  severe  flogging  with  yucca 
switches  at  the  hands  of  ferocious  Kachinas.  The  cere 
mony  lasts  nine  days  and  is  presided  over  by  the  chief 
of  the  Powamu  fraternity  assisted  by  the  Kachina 
chief.  In  the  kivas  various  rites  are  carried  on  and 
altars  of  bright-colored  sand  are  made.  The  most  in 
teresting  event  is  the  recital  of  the  myth  of  the  Po 
wamu  on  which  the  ceremony  is  based.  This  account 
is  given  by  a  costumed  priest  who  represents  the 
Kachina  Muyingwa,  the  god  of  germs,  and  relates  to 
the  wanderings  of  certain  clans  and  their  arrival  in 
Tusayan. 

On  the  ninth  and  last  day  bands  of  different  Kachi 
nas  roam  the  village,  some  furnishing  amusement  to 
the  people  and  others  bringing  terror  to  naughty  chil 
dren,  while  still  others  go  about  distributing  bean 
sprouts  or  on  various  errands.  With  this  ceremony 


140  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

the  joyous  season  of  the  Kachinas  begins.     Dr.  Fewkes 
says: 3 

The  origin  of  this  feast  dates  from  the  adventures 
of  a  hero  of  the  Ka-tci-nyu-muh,  "Ka-tci-nia  people. " 
The  following  legend  of  this  people  is  preserved. 
While  the  group  of  gentes  known  by  this  name  was  on 
its  travels,  they  halted  near  the  San  Francisco  Moun 
tains  and  built  houses.  During  this  moon  the  hero 
went  out  to  hunt  rabbits,  and  came  to  a  region  wher  3 
there  was  no  snow.  There  he  saw  another  Ka-tci-na 
people  dancing  amidst  beautiful  gardens.  He  re 
ceived  melons  from  them,  and  carrying  them  home, 
told  a  strange  story  of  a  people  who  inhabited  a  coun 
try  where  there  were  flowering  plants  in  midwinter. 
The  hero  and  a  comrade  were  sent  back,  and  the/ 
stayed  with  these  people,  returning  home,  loaded  with 
fruit,  during  February.  They  had  learned  the  songs 
of  those  with  whom  they  had  lived,  and  taught  then 
in  the  kib-va  of  their  own  people. 

The  Great  Plumed  Serpent  who  appears  in  the  myth 
ology  of  many  American  tribes  is  the  chief  actor  in 
the  Palulukong  ceremony,  which  is  held  in  March.  It 
is  a  serpent  drama  in  which  the  sun  also  has  higli 
honor.  The  actors  are  masked,  as  the  ceremony  is 
under  the  control  of  the  Kachinas,  who  are  adept  at 
theatrical  performances  when  represented  by  the  fer 
tile-minded  Hopi. 

s  For  an  extended  study  of  this  ceremony  see  The  Oraibi 
Powamu  Ceremony  by  H.  B.  Voth,  Publication  61,  Field  Col 
umbian  Museum,  Chicago,  1901,  and  Tusayan  Katcinas  by  Dr. 
J.  Walter  Fewkes,  loth  Annual  Keport  of  the  Bureau  of 
American  Ethnology. 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  141 

The  clans  have  gathered  in  their  respective  kivas, 
where  painting  of  masks  and  other  paraphernalia,  re 
hearsals,  etc.,  have  continued  for  several  days.  In  the 
kiva  which  is  for  the  nonce  to  be  the  theater,  a  crowd 
of  visitors  have  assembled,  and  in  the  middle  of  the 
room  two  old  kiva  chiefs  sit  around  the  fire,  which 
they  feed  with  small  twigs  of  greasewood  to  produce 
an  uncertain,  flickering  light. 

The  arrival  of  the  first  group  of  actors  is  heralded 
by  strange  cries  from  without  the  kiva,  and  a  ball  of 
corn  meal  thrown  down  the  hatchway  is  answered 
with  invitations  to  enter.  The  fire  is  darkened  by  a 
blanket  held  over  it,  and  the  actors  climb  down  the 
ladder  and  arrange  their  properties.  The  fire  tenders 
drop  the  blankets,  and  on  the  floor  is  seen  a  miniature 
field  of  corn  made  by  fastening  sprouted  corn  in  clay 
pedestals.  Behind  this  corn  field  is  a  cloth  screen 
decorated  with  figures  of  human  beings,  corn,  clouds, 
lightning,  etc.,  hung  across  the  room,  and  along  the 
screen  six  openings  masked  by  flaps.  On  either  side 
of  the  screen  stand  several  masked  men,  one  dressed 
as  a  woman  holding  a  basket  tray  of  meal  and  an  ear 
of  corn.  A  song  begins  and  the  actors  dance  to  the 
music;  the  hoarse  roar  of  a  gourd  horn  resounds 
through  the  kiva,  and  instantly  the  flaps  in  the  screen 
are  drawn  up  and  the  heads  of  grotesque  serpents 
with  goggle  eyes,  feather  crest,  horn,  fierce  teeth,  and 
red  tongues,  appear  in  the  six  openings.  Farther  and 
farther  they  seem  to  thrust  themselves  out,  until  four 


142  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

feet  of  the  painted  body  can  be  seen.  Then  as  the 
song  grows  louder  the  plumed  snakes  sway  in  time  to 
the  music,  biting  at  each  other  and  darting  toward 
the  actors.  Suddenly  they  bend  their  heads  down  and 
sweep  the  imitation  cornfield  into  a  confused  heap, 
then  raise  their  wagging  heads  as  before,  and  it  is  see  i 
that  the  central  serpent  has  udders  and  suckles  the 
others.  Amid  the  roars  of  the  horn  and  great  excite 
ment  offerings  of  meal  and  prayers  are  made  to  the 
plumed  serpents.  The  actor  dressed  as  a  woman  and 
who  represents  the  mother  of  the  Kachinas  now  pre 
sents  the  corn  and  meal  to  the  serpents  as  food  and 
offers  his  breasts  to  them. 

Now  the  song  diminishes,  the  effigies  are  drawn 
back,  and  the  flaps  with  the  sun  symbol  painted  o  i 
them  let  down ;  the  blankets  are  again  held  around  the 
fire,  the  spectacle  is  dismantled,  the  actors  file  out,  and 
the  people  among  whom  the  corn  hills  have  been  dis 
tributed  wait  for  other  actors  to  appear,  while  foreign 
visitors  wonder  at  the  mechanical  skill  displayed  in 
constructing  and  manipulating  the  effigies. 

Now  Tewan  actors  from  Hano  give  a  remarkable 
buffalo  dance.  They  wear  helmets,  representing  buf 
falo  heads,  and  are  clad  in  black  sheep  pelts.  In 
their  hands  they  hold  zigzag  lightning  wands,  and  to 
the  beat  of  a  drum  dance  with  characteristic  postures ; 
with  them  dance  a  man  and  boy  dressed  as  eagles, 
who  give  forth  shrill  bird  calls.  This  dance  is  an  in 
troduction  from  Rio  Grande  Pueblos. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  143 

After  them  conies  another  group  of  actors  clothed 
in  ceremonial  kilts  and  wearing  helmet  masks.  They 
are  called  the  "Stone  War  Club  Kachinas"  and  with 
them  are  two  men  dressed  as  women;  one,  represent 
ing  the  Spider  "Woman,  dances  before  the  fire  with 
graceful  movements  of  the  arms  and  body  to  the  sound 
of  singing  and  the  beat  of  a  drum.  At  the  close  of 
the  dance  she  distributes  seeds  of  corn,  melons,  and 
useful  plants. 

The  fourth  act  is  that  of  the  Maiden  Corn  Grinders. 
First,  two  masked  men  bring  down  the  ladder  bundles 
containing  two  grinding  slabs  and  grinding  stones  and 
arrange  them  on  the  floor.  After  them  come  two 
masked  girls  in  elaborate  ceremonial  attire,  followed 
in  a  little  while  by  a  line  of  masked  dancers  who  form 
the  chorus.  At  a  signal  the  chorus  begins  to  sing  and 
posture  while  the  maids  grind  corn  in  time  with  the 
song.  They  then  leave  the  mills  and  dance  in  the 
middle  of  the  room  with  graceful  movements,  point 
ing  at  the  audience  with  ears  of  corn,  while  the  bear 
ers  of  the  mill  stones  put  pinches  of  meal  in  the 
mouths  of  the  spectators. 

The  fifth  act  is  somewhat  like  the  first,  except  that 
there  are  two  huge  snakes,  and  several  of  the  actors  as 
chorus,  with  knobs  of  mud  on  their  masks,  wrestle  with 
the  snakes  in  a  most  realistic  fashion  and  afford  great 
entertainment. 

After  this  act  another  set  of  performers  gives  a 
more  remarkable  serpent  drama.  Back  of  the  field  of 


144  MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND 

corn  on  the  floor  are  seen  two  large  pottery  vases,  and, 
as  if  by  magic,  the  covers  of  the  vases  fly  back,  and 
from  them  two  serpents  emerge,  swoop  down  and  over 
throw  the  corn  hills,  struggle  with  each  other  and  per 
form  many  gyrations,  then  withdraw  into  the  vases. 
In  the  dim  light  of  the  kiva  fire  the  cords  by  which 
the  serpents  are  manipulated  cannot  be  seen,  and  th-3 
realism  of  the  act  is  wonderful.  In  other  years  the 
acts  are  even  more  startling,  as  when  masked  men 
wrestle  with  serpents  which  seem  to  try  to  coil  about 
their  victims.  The  actor  thrusts  one  arm  in  the  body 
of  the  snake  in  order  to  give  these  movements,  while  a 
false  arm  is  tied  to  his  shoulder.  Sometimes  also  tha 
corn-maid  grinders  are  represented  by  joined  figures 
surrounded  by  a  framework.  They  are  made  to  bend 
backward  and  forward  and  grind  corn  on  small  nicta 
tes.  At  times  they  raise  one  hand  and  rub  meal  on 
their  faces,  like  the  Hopi  corn  grinders  in  daily  life, 
while  above  them  on  the  framework  two  birds  carved 
from  wood  and  painted  are  made  to  walk  back  and 
forth.  On  the  day  of  the  public  dance  the  corn  maids 
attended  by  many  masked  Kachinas  grind  in  the  dance 
plaza. 

The  Great  Plumed  Serpent  who  has  control  of  all 
the  waters  of  the  earth  and  who  frequents  the  springs, 
once,  as  the  legend  goes,  caused  a  great  flood  and  was 
appeased  only  by  the  sacrifice  of  a  boy  and  girl.  ( See 
Myths.)  The  home  of  this  monster  was  in  the  Red 
Land  of  the  South,  whence  some  of  the  Hopi  clans 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  145 

came.  Dr.  J.  Walter  Fewkes  believes  that  the  great 
serpent  of  Mexican  and  Central  American  mythology 
is  this  same  being,  which  shows  the  debt  of  the  Hopi 
to  the  culture  of  the  south. 

Now  the  Kachinas  throng  the  pueblos  and  a  perfect 
carnival  reigns  with  the  jo}rful  Hopi.  There  is  a  be 
wildering  review  of  the  hosts  of  the  good  things  and 
bad,  interwoven  with  countless  episodes.  Songs  of 
great  beauty,  strange  masked  pageants,  bright-tinted 
piki  and  Kachina  bread  attract  powerfully  three  of  the 
senses,  and  the  Hopi  enjoy  the  season  to  the  full  with 
the  knowledge  that  the  growing  crops  thrive  toward 
perfection  in  the  fields  below  the  mesa. 

The  Kachinas  are  the  deified  spirits  of  the  ancestors, 
who  came  from  San  Francisco  Mountains  and  per 
haps  from  the  Rio  Grande  and  other  places,  to  visit 
their  people.  Their  name  means  the  " sitters,"  be 
cause  of  the  custom  of  burial  in  a  sitting  posture,  and 
they  resemble  "The  watchers  sitting  below"  of  Faust. 
They  are  believed  to  guard  the  interests  of  the  Hopi 
and  to  intercede  with  the  gods  of  rain  and  fertility. 
Their  first  coming  is  in  December  at  the  Soyal  cere 
mony,  and  others  continue  to  come  till  August  when 
the  great  Niman,  or  Farewell  Kachina,  is  celebrated 
with  songs,  dances,  and  feasting. 

These  deified  spirits,  or  Kachinas,  are  personated  by 
Indians  who  sometimes  go  outside  the  town,  dress 
themelves  in  appropriate  costume,  present  themselves 
at  the  gate,  and  are  escorted  through  the  streets  with 


146  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

great  fun  and  frolic.  Every  few  days  there  is  a  new 
arrival  and  a  fresh  festival.  Each  year  there  is  some 
thing  new,  and  the  Indians  rack  their  inventive  genius 
to  produce  the  most  startling  masks  and  costumes.  The 
kachinas  admit  of  any  character  in  the  extensive  Hopi 
mythology.  Almost  any  character  from  a  clown  to  a 
god  can  be  introduced,  and  there  are  songs  belonging 
to  each.  Every  male  Hopi  takes  some  part  in  the 
kachinasy  and  all  dates  and  distances  are  cancelled 
when  these  dances  are  in  progress. 

The  kachina  dances  promote  sociability  among  tie 
pueblos.  The  Walpi  boys,  for  instance,  may  give  a 
representation  of  a  kachina  at  a  neighboring  pueb-o 
in  return  for  a  like  expression  of  good-will  on  son  e 
other  occasion.  It  goes  without  saying  that  there  is  a 
friendly  rivalry  among  the  pueblos,  each  striving  to 
give  the  best  dance.  Like  his  white  brothers,  the  In 
dian  works  harder  at  his  amusement  than  at  almost 
anything  else. 

These  dances  also  show  the  cheerful  Hopi  at  his 
best,  —  a  true,  spontaneous  child  of  nature.  They  are 
the  most  characteristic  ceremonies  of  the  pueblos,  most 
musical,  spectacular,  and  pleasing.  They  are  really 
more  worthy  of  the  attention  of  white  people  than  the 
forbidding  Snake  Dance,  which  overshadows  them  by 
the  element  of  horror. 

In  July  the  kachwas  take  their  flight,  and  with  a 
great  culminating  ceremony  the  Hopi  bid  them  fare 
well.  The  Niman,  or  Farewell  ceremony,  begins 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  147 

about  July  20th  and  lasts  nine  days,  like  the  four 
great  ceremonies  between  August  and  November,  and 
like  them  also  having  a  regular  secret  ritual  in  the 
kivas.  Instead,  however,  of  one  day  or  so  of  public 
ceremony,  the  Niman  furnishes  many  surprises  and 
sallyings  forth  to  the  amusement  of  the  populace. 
Delegates  hurry  on  very  long  journeys  for  sacred 
water,  pine  boughs,  and  other  essentials  for  the  use  of 
the  priests.  Sad  indeed  is  the  state  of  the  Hopi  that 
fate  detains,  and  strong  must  be  circumstances  that 
prevent  his  reunion  with  his  people  at  this  great  fes 
tival. 

The  Niman  public  dances  which  follow  the  eight 
days  of  kiva  rites  are  imposing  spectacles.  The  first 
takes  place  before  sunrise  and  the  second  in  the  after 
noon.  There  are  many  kachinas  in  rich  costumes, 
wearing  strange  helmets  and  adorned  in  many  striking 
ways.  They  carry  planting  sticks,  hoes,  and  other 
emblematic  paraphernalia.  A  number  are  dressed  as 
female  kachinas.  These  furnished  an  accompaniment 
to  the  song  by  rasping  sheep's  scapulae  over  notched 
sticks  placed  on  wooden  sounding  boxes.  The  male 
and  female  dancers  stand  in  two  lines  and  posture  to 
the  music,  and  the  former  turn  around  repeatedly  dur 
ing  the  dance.  The  children  especially  enjoy  the 
dance,  because  the  kachinas  have  brought  great  loads 
of  corn,  beans,  and  melons,  and  baskets  of  peaches, 
which  are  gifts  for  the  young  folks,  and  dolls,  bows, 
and  arrows  are  also  given  them.  The  dance  is  repeated 


148  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

in  the  afternoon  in  another  plaza,  after  which  the  pro 
cession  departs  to  carry  offerings  to  a  shrine  outside 
the  town  and  the  drama  of  the  Farewell  kachina  is 
over. 

With  the  coming  of  the  different  clans,  each  having 
some  ceremony  peculiar  to  itself,  and  held  at  a  certain 
time  in  the  year,  there  must  have  been  an  adjustment 
of  interests  to  fit  the  ceremonies  to  the  moons,  as  we 
now  see  in  the  Hopi  calendar.  This  may  explain  the 
fusing  of  the  Snake- Antelope  ceremonies  and  the  two 
Flutes,  which  come  in  August,  and  the  assignment  of 
the  two  groups  to  alternate  years.  It  is  to  be  es- 
pected  also  that  rain  ceremonies  would  preponderate 
in  the  Southwest,  and  by  mutual  concessions  the  clans 
making  up  the  Hopi  would  arrange  their  rites  to  fit 
in  the  month  when  the  rain-makers  are  needed.  Thus, 
the  women's  ceremonies  in  September  and  October 
would  not  need  to  be  disturbed,  perhaps  to  the  relief 
of  the  obscure  Hopi  who,  like  Julius  Caesar,  reformed 
the  calendar. 

//The  Snake  and  Flute  ceremonies  of  the  Hopi  are 
most  widely  known,  since  at  this  season  of  the  year 
most  travelers  visit  Tusayan,  and  besides,  the  Snake 
Dance,  from  it  elements  of  horror,  has  overshadowed 
other  ceremonies  that  are  beautiful  and  interesting. 
Still,  the  Snake  Dance  is  unique,  and  in  its  unfolding 
displays  virile  action  and  the  compelling  force  of  man 
over  the  lesser  animate  creation,  giving  to  the  drama  a 
certain  grandeur  not  observed  in  other  ceremonies. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  149 

No  form  of  language  is  capable  of  describing  it.  Those 
who  have  seen  it  make  it  an  unforgettable  episode  in 
their  lives.  Those  who  have  made  it  a  study  declare 
that  the  mind  of  man  has  never  conceived  its  equal. 

When  the  Snake  and  Antelope  fraternities  descend 
into  their  respective  kivas  about  the  middle  of  August, 
the  rites  commence.  The  events  that  attract  popular 
interest  begin  at  once  on  the  first  day,  when  a  party  of 
Snake  priests,  painted  and  costumed  and  with  snake 
whips  and  digging  sticks  in  their  hands,  descend  from 
the  mesa  to  hunt  snakes  in  the  north  quarter.  These 
men,  keenly  watching  for  snake  trails,  eagerly  search, 
beating  the  sage-brush  and  digging  in  holes  that 
may  harbor  their  quarry,  thrusting  their  hands  into 
such  places  with  the  utmost  fearlessness.  At  sunset, 
after  an  exhausting  day's  work,  they  return  from  the 
hunt  with  snakes,  if  they  have  been  successful,  which 
are  transferred  from  their  pouches  into  the  snake  jars. 
For  four  days  the  hunt  goes  on,  each  day  to  a  different 
world  quarter.  If  a  snake  is  seen  it  is  sprinkled  with 
meal,  and  as  it  tries  to  escape,  one  of  the  hunters 
seizes  it  a  few  inches  back  of  the  head  and  places  it  in 
his  pouch. 

When  the  snakes,  big  and  little,  venomous  and  harm 
less,  have  been  collected  and  stowed  away  in  the  jars 
like  those  used  by  the  women  to  carry  water,  there 
comes  the  great  event  of  snake  washing.  The  priests 
assemble  in  the  kiva  and  seat  themselves  on  stone  seats 
around  the  wall,  holding  in  the  hand  a  snake  whip 


150  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

made  of  two  eagle  feathers  secured  to  a  short  stick. 
On  the  floor  diy  sand  has  been  spread  out  and  011  it  a 
medicine  bowl  of  water.  The  snakes  have  been  placed 
in  bags  near  by  in  the  care  of  priests,  and  the  snake 
washer,  arrayed  as  a  warrior,  sets  himself  before  the 
bowl,  while  back  of  him  stand  two  men  waving  snake 
whips.  A  weird  song  begins,  and  the  warrior  thrusts 
his  hand  into  the  bag  and  draws  out  a  handful  of 
snakes,  plunges  them  into  the  medicine  water,  and 
drops  them  on  the  sand.  Then  the  snakes  are  rapidly 
passed  to  the  warrior,  who  plunges  them  and  easts 
them  forth,  while  the  priests  wave  their  wands  and 
sing,  now  low  and  now  loudly  and  vehemently.  Some 
of  the  snakes  try  to  escape,  but  are  herded  on  the  sand 
field,  which  is  for  the  purpose  of  drying  them.  The 
snakes  are  left  on  the  floor  for  a  few  hours  intervenh  g 
before  the  public  dance,  a  writhing  mass,  watched  over 
by  naked  boys.  These  boys,  barefoot  and  otherwise 
entirely  naked,  sit  down  on  the  stones  and  with  their 
whips  or  naked  hands,  play  with  the  snakes,  per 
mitting  them  to  crawl  over  and  under  their  feet,  be 
tween  their  legs,  handling  them,  using  them  as  play- 
things,  paying  no  more  attention  to  the  rattlesnakes 
than  to  the  smallest  harmless  whip-snakes,  creating  a 
sight  never  to  be  forgotten.  It  must  be  admitted, 
however,  that  owing  to  the  absolute  abandon  and  reck 
lessness  used  by  the  boys  in  handling  these  snakes,  all 
of  one's  preconceived  notions  of  the  dangerousness  of 
the  rattlesnake  entirely  disappear.  Occasionally,  one 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  151 

of  the  snakes,  being  tossed  to  a  distance  of  four  or 
five  feet,  apparently  resents  the  insult,  but  before 
the  snake  has  had  sufficient  time  to  coil,  it  will  be 
straightened  out  by  one  of  the  other  boys  or  tossed 
back  to  its  original  position,  and  so  the  sport  (for  it 
was  nothing  less  to  these  boys)  continue,  as  has  been 
stated,  for  more  than  two  hours.4 
Dr.  Fewkes  thus  describes  the  Walpi  snake  washing : 

The  Snake  Priests,  who  stood  by  the  snake  jars 
which  were  in  the  east  corner  of  the  room,  began  to 
take  out  the  reptiles,  and  stood  holding  several  of  them 
in  their  hands  behind  Su-pe-la,  so  that  my  attention 
was  distracted  by  them.  Su-pe-la  then  prayed,  and 
after  a  short  interval  two  rattlesnakes  were  handed 
him,  after  which  venomous  snakes  were  passed  to  the 
others,  and  each  of  the  six  priests  who  sat  around  the 
bowl  held  two  rattlesnakes  by  the  necks  with  their 
heads  elevated  above  the  bowl.  A  low  noise  from  the 
rattles  of  the  priests,  which  shortly  after  was  accom 
panied  by  a  melodious  hum  by  all  present,  then  be 
gan.  The  priests  who  held  the  snakes  beat  time  up 
and  down  above  the  liquid  with  the  reptiles,  which, 
although  not  vicious,  wound  their  bodies  around  the 
arms  of  the  holders.  The  song  went  on  and  frequently 
changed,  growing  louder  and  wilder,  until  it  burst 
forth  into  a  fierce,  blood-curdling  yell,  or  war-cry. 
At  this  moment  the  heads  of  the  snakes  were  thrust 
several  times  into  the  liquid,  so  that  even  parts  of 
their  bodies  were  submerged,  and  Were  then  drawn 

*  The  Mishongnovi  Ceremonies  of  the  Snake  and  Antelope 
Ceremonies.  G.  A.  Dorsey  and  H.  R.  Voth.  Field  Columbian 
Museum,  Chicago,  3902,  p.  247-248. 


152  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

out,  not  having  left  the  hands  of  the  priests,  and  for 
cibly  thrown  across  the  room  upon  the  sand  mosaic, 
knocking  down  the  crooks  and  other  objects  placed 
about  it.  As  they  fell  on  the  sand  picture  three  Snake 
priests  stood  in  readiness,  and  while  the  reptiles 
squirmed  about  or  coiled  for  defense,  these  men  with 
their  snake  whips  brushed  them  back  and  forth  in  the 
sand  of  the  altar.  The  excitement  which  accompanied 
this  ceremony  cannot  be  adequately  described.  The 
low  song,  breaking  into  piercing  shrieks,  the  red- 
stained  singers,  the  snakes  thrown  by  the  chiefs,  and 
the  fierce  attitudes  of  the  reptiles  as  they  lashed  on 
the  sand  mosaic,  made  it  next  to  impossible  to  sit 
calmly  down,  and  quietly  note  the  events  which  fol 
lowed  one  after  another  in  quick  succession.  The 
sight  haunted  me  for  weeks  afterwards,  and  I  can 
never  forget  this  wildest  of  all  the  aboriginal  rites  of 
this  strange  people,  which  showed  no  element  of  our 
present  civilization.  It  was  a  performance  which 
might  have  been  expected  in  the  heart  of  Africa  rather 
than  in  the  American  Union,  and  certainly  one  could 
not  realize  that  he  was  in  the  United  States  at  the  end 
of  the  nineteenth  century.  The  low  weird  song  con 
tinued  while  other  rattlesnakes  were  taken  in  the 
hands  of  the  priests,  and  as  the  song  rose  again  to  the 
wild  war-cry,  these  snakes  were  also  plunged  into  the 
liquid  and  thrown  upon  the  writhing  mass  which  now 
occupied  the  place  of  the  altar.  Again  and  again  this 
was  repeated  until  all  the  snakes  had  been  treated  in 
the  same  way,  and  reptiles,  fetiches,  crooks  and  sand 
were  mixed  together  in  one  confused  mass.  As  the 
excitement  subsided  and  the  snakes  crawled  to  the 
corners  of  the  kiva,  seeking  vainly  for  protection,  they 
were  pushed  back  in  the  mass,  and  brushed  together 
in  the  sand  in  order  that  their  bodies  might  be  thor- 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  153 

oughly  dried.  Every  snake  in  the  collection  was  thus 
washed,  the  harmless  varieties  being  bathed  after  the 
venomous.  In  the  destruction  of  the  altar  by  the  rep 
tiles  the  snake  ti-po-ni  stood  upright  until  all  had 
been  washed,  and  then  one  of  the  priests  turned  it  on 
its  side,  as  a  sign  that  the  observance  had  ended.  The 
low,  weird  song  of  the  Snake  men  continued,  and 
gradually  died  away  until  there  was  no  sound  but  the 
warning  rattle  of  the  snakes,  mingled  with  that  of  the 
rattles  in  the  hands  of  the  chiefs,  and  finally  the  mo 
tion  of  the  snake  whips  ceased,  and  all  was  silent. 

On  the  previous  day  the  Antelope  society  had  cele 
brated  its  race  and  public  dance,  which  duplicate  those 
of  the  Snake  society,  except  that  the  former  take  first 
place,  and  instead  of  snakes,  the  priests  dance  about, 
the  leader  holding  a  bundle  of  cornstalks  in  the  mouth. 

Now  comes  the  stirring  dawn  race  of  the  Snake  so 
ciety.  The  race  is  from  a  distant  spring  to  the  mesa 
and  is  full  of  excitement,  filling  one  with  surprise  at 
the  endurance  of  the  runners.  The  winner  will  ar 
rive  at  the  kiva,  breathing  more  freely,  perhaps,  than 
usual,  but  showing  almost  no  traces  of  his  strenuous 
efforts,  and  will  wait  quietly  for  the  award  of  the 
prize.  In  the  kiva  meanwhile  the  priests  have  been 
enacting  a  drama  of  the  Snake  legend. 

After  a  few  hours,  when  the  sun  is  getting  low,  the 
Antelope  priests  file  out  and  after  circling  the  plaza 
stand  in  line  awaiting  the  Snake  priests,  who  advance 
with  tragic  strides.  They  circle  the  plaza  three  times, 
each  stamping  on  a  plank  in  front  of  the  cottonwood 


154  MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND 

bower,  kisi,  to  notify  the  denizens  of  the  underworld 
that  a  ceremony  in  their  honor  is  progressing.  They 
face  the  Antelope  chorus,  the  rattles  tremble  with  a 
sound  like  the  warning  of  the  rattlesnake,  and  a  deep, 
low-toned  chant  begins  like  a  distant  storm.  The 
chant  increases  in  volume,  the  lines  sway,  then  undu 
late  backward  and  forward,  and  at  last,  in  a  culmi 
nating  burst  of  the  chant,  the  Snake  men  form  in 
groups  of  three  and  dance  around  the  plaza  with  a 
strange  step  like  a  restrained  leap.  The  snakes  have 
been  placed  in  the  kisi  in  care  of  the  passer  hidden 
among  the  boughs.  As  the  trios  in  succession  arrive 
before  the  kisi  the  carrier  drops  to  his  knees,  secures 
a  snake  which  he  grasps  in  his  mouth,  rises  and  dances 
around  in  a  circular  path  four  times,  when  the  snake 
is  dropped  to  the  ground  and  is  picked  up  with  light 
ning  rapidity  by  the  third  member  of  the  trio  who  re 
tains  the  squirming  reptile  in  his  hands.  Thus  these 
groups  of  demons  circle  until  all  the  snakes  have  been 
carried.  The  chant  ceases;  a  priest  draws  a  cloud 
symbol  in  white  meal  on  the  rock  floor  of  the  mesa,  and 
with  wild  action  the  gatherers  throw  the  snakes  on 
the  meal;  a  fierce  scramble  ensues,  and  in  a  moment 
one  sees  the  priests  running  down  the  trails  to  deposit 
their  brothers  among  the  rocks  a  mile  or  so  away. 

After  all,  no  ceremony  goes  on  in  Hopiland  without 
the  aid  of  the  gentler  sex.  While  the  da  nee  has  focussecl 
the  attention  of  every  eye  a  group  of  maids  and  ma 
trons,  neat  and  clean  as  to  hair  and  costume,  and  hold- 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  155 

ing  trays  of  sacred  nieal,  have  sprinkled  the  dancers 
and  snakes  as  they  passed  by.  The  Antelopes  take  up 
their  line,  march  around  the  plaza  the  required  num 
ber  of  times,  file  away  to  their  kiva,  and  the  public 
dance  is  over.  Those  who  wish,  however,  go  to  the 
mesa  side  to  see  the  effects  of  the  powerful  emetic 
taken  by  the  Snake  priests  as  a  purification.  At 
Walpi,  the  old  Snake  Woman,  Saalako,  brews  the  medi 
cine,  and  she  knows  how  many  black  bettles  must  be 
stewed  in  this  concoction  of  herbs.  Last,  but  not  least, 
comes  the  feast  consumed  with  the  appetite  of  youth 
amid  general  rejoicing  if  the  August  rain  cumuli 
burst  over  the  fields.  For  several  days  after  the 
Snake  Dance  the  young  and  not  too  old  play  jolly 
comes  the  feast  consumed  with  the  appetite  of  youth, 
childlike  simplicity. 

A  bite  from  a  venomous  snake  so  rarely  occurs  that 
there  is  no  eye  witness,  so  far  as  is  known,  to  such 
happening.  The  fangs  are  not  extracted,  nor  are  the 
snakes  stupefied.  Careful  handling  and  the  herding 
of  the  reptiles  with  others  of  their  kind  before  the 
ceremony  perhaps  give  the  explanation. 

The  Snake  Ceremony,  whose  wild  scenes  rack  the 
nerves  of  the  onlooker,  is  a  prayer  for  rain  and  is  based 
on  a  legend  whose  sentiment  might  be  applauded  if 
the  other  passive  actors  were  not  subject  to  an  in 
stinctive  enmity.  Snakes  are  blood  brothers  of  the 
Hopi  Snake  clan. 

The  legend  relates  that  a  youth,  having  the  curiosity 


156  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

to  know  where  the  waters  flowed,  embarked  in  a  hol 
low  log,  closed  except  a  small  orifice,  and  went  down 
the  Great  Colorado  to  its  mouth,  thus  antedating  the 
perilous  feat  of  Major  Powell  by  a  long  time !  Here 
he  found  the  Spider  Woman,  who  prompted  him  in 
his  dealings  with  the  people  living  there.  After  many 
strange  adventures,  during  which  he  was  taught  the 
rites  now  practiced  by  the  Snake  society,  he  won  the 
daughter  of  a  Snake  chief  and  brought  her  to  his 
country.  The  first  fruits  of  this  union  were  snakes, 
who  bit  the  Hopi  and  who  were  driven  away  on  this 
account.  Later,  children  were  human,  and  with  them 
originated  the  Snake  clan,  whose  wanderings  brought 
them  at  last  to  Walpi ;  and  tradition  affirms  that  they 
were  among  the  first  arrivals  there. 

The  Flute  Ceremony,  which  alternates  with  the 
Snake- Antelope  Ceremony,  is  most  pleasing  and  inter 
esting.  Visitors  to  Hopiland  in  August  of  the  proper 
year  are  always  charmed  with  the  dramatic  perform 
ance  and  beautiful  songs  of  the  Flute  society.  In  Wal 
pi  there  is  only  one  priesthood  of  the  Flute,  but  in  other 
pueblos  of  the  Middle  Mesa  and  in  Oraibi  there  are  two, 
one  of  the  Blue  Flute  and  the  other  of  the  Gray  Flute. 

On  the  first  day  the  sand  altar  is  made  and  at  night 
the  songs  are  begun.  Within  the  kiva  the  intermin 
able  rites  go  on,  and  daily  the  cycle  of  songs  accom 
panied  with  flutes  is  rehearsed.  A  messenger  clad  in 
an  embroidered  kilt  and  anointed  with  honey  runs 
with  flowing  hair  to  deposit  prayer-sticks  at  the 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  157 

shrines,  encircling  the  fields  in  his  runs  and  coming 
nearer  the  pueblo  on  each  circuit.  During  the  sev 
enth  and  eighth  days  a  visit  is  made  to  three  impor 
tant  springs  where  ceremonies  are  held,  and  on  the  re 
turn  of  the  priests  they  are  received  by  an  assemblage 
of  the  Bear  and  Snake  societies,  the  chiefs  of  which 
challenge  them  and  tell  them  that  if  they  are  good 
people,  as  they  claim,  they  can  bring  rain. 

After  an  interesting  interchange  of  ceremonies  the 
Flute  priests  return  to  their  kiva  to  prepare  for  the 
public  dance  on  the  morrow.  When  at  3  A.  M.  the 
belt  of  Orion  is  at  a  certain  place  in  the  heavens  the 
priests  file  into  the  plaza,  where  a  cottonwood  bower 
has  been  erected  over  the  shrine  called  the  entrance  to 
the  underworld.  Here  the  priests  sing,  accompanied 
with  flutes,  the  shrine  is  ceremonially  opened  and 
prayer-sticks  placed  within,  and  they  return  to  the 
kiva.  At  some  of  the  pueblos  there  is  a  race  up  the 
mesa  at  dawn  on  the  ninth  day  as  in  other  ceremonies. 

On  the  e_yening  of  the  ninth  day  the  Flute  proces 
sion  forms  and  winds  down  the  trail  to  the  spring  in 
order:  a  leader,  the  Snake  maiden  and  two  Snake 
youths,  the  priests,  and  in  the  rear  a  costumed  warrior 
with  bow  and  whizzer.  At  the  spring  they  sit  on  the 
north  side  of  the  pool,  and  as  one  of  the  priests  plays 
a  flute  the  others  sing,  while  one  of  their  number 
wades  into  the  spring,  dives  under  the  water,  and 
plants  a  prayer-stick  in  the  muddy  bottom.  Then 
taking  a  flute  he  again  wades  into  the  spring  and 


158  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

sounds  it  in  the  water  to  the  four  cardinal  points. 
Meanwhile  sunflowers  and  cornstalks  have  been 
brought  to  the  spring  by  messengers.  Each  priest 
places  the  sunflowers  on  his  head  and  each  takes  two 
cornstalks  in  his  hands,  and  the  procession,  two 
abreast,  forms  to  ascend  the  mesa.  A  priest  draws  on 
the  trail  with  white  corn  meal  a  line  and  across  it 
three  cloud  symbols.  The  Flute  children  throw  the 
offerings  they  hold  in  their  hands  upon  the  symbols 
and  advance  to  the  symbols,  followed  by  the  priests 
who  sing  to  the  sound  of  the  flutes.  The  children  pick 
the  offerings  from  the  ground  with  sticks  held  in  the 
hand,  and  the  same  performance  is  repeated  till 
they  stand  again  in  the  plaza  on  the  mesa  before  the 
cottonwood  bower,  when  they  sing  melodious  songs, 
then  disperse. 

The  Flute  legend,  of  which  the  ceremony  is  a  drama 
tization,  relates  that  the  Bear  and  Snake  people  in 
early  times  lived  along  the  Walpi.  The  Horn  and 
Flute  people  came  that  way  and  halted  at  a  spring. 
Not  knowing  whether  other  people  lived  in  their  neigh 
borhood,  they  sent  out  a  spy  who  returned  and  re 
ported  that  he  had  seen  traces  of  other  peoples.  The 
Flute  people  set  forth  to  find  them,  and  so  they  came 
to  the  Walpi  houses,  halting  at  the  foot  of  the  mesa 
and  moving  up  the  trail,  as  in  the  ceremony,  with  songs 
and  the  music  of  flutes. 

The  Walpi  people  had  drawn  a  line  of  meal  across 
the  trail,  closing  it  from  all  comers,  and  demanded 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  159 

whence  the  Flutes  were  going  and  what  they  desired. 
Then  the  Flute  chief  said : 

'  *  We  are  of  your  blood,  Hopi.  Our  hearts  are  good 
and  our  speech  straight.  We  carry  on  our  backs  the 
tabernacle  of  the  Flute  Altar.  We  can  cause  rain  to 
fall."  Four  times  they  challenged  the  Flute  people 
as  they  stood  before  the  line  of  meal  and  four  times 
this  reply  was  given.  Then  the  Walpians  erased  the 
meal  barrier  and  the  Flutes  passed  into  the  pueblo,  set 
up  their  altar,  sang  the  cloud-compelling  songs  and 
brought  the  welcome  rain.  Then  the  Bear  and  Snake 
chiefs  said,  "Surely  your  chief  shall  be  one  of  our 
chiefs." 

It  will  be  seen  that  this  legend,  collected  by  Dr.  J. 
Walter  Fewkes,  is  enacted  in  the  ceremony  just  de 
scribed.  And  the  Flute  priests  also  think  they  are 
more  successful  rain  makers  than  the  Snake- Antelope 
priests,  and  do  not  hesitate  to  so  declare.5 

In  the  September  moon  the  Hopi  women  of  five  of, 
the  pueblos  hold  a  celebration  of  their  own,  which  is 
not  the  least  interesting  ceremony  in  the  calendar. 
It  is  called  the  Lalakonti,  and  like  the  other  cere 
monies  of  this  part  of  the  year  extends  over  nine  days. 
Sometimes  it  is  called  the  Basket  Dance  —  from  the 
great  use  made  of  the  sacred  plaques  in  the  ceremony 
—  a  quite  appropriate  use,  since  these  baskets  are  pe 
culiarly  the  product  of  women's  taste  and  skill.  The 
details  of  the  kiva  rites,  such  as  polio  making,  the  con- 

5  The  Walpi  Flute  Observance,  Dr.  J.  Walter  Fewkes,  Jour. 
Am.  Folk-Lore,  Vol.  7,  Oct.-Dec.,  1894. 


160  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

struction  of  a  sand  altar,  initiation  of  novitiates,  dis 
patching  of  messengers,  songs,  etc.,  need  not  be  en 
tered  into,  since  they  belong  to  all  the  ceremonies  and 
have  much  in  common. 

On  the  morning  of  the  fourth  day,  if  one  is  up  at  the 
faintest  dawn  he  may  see  a  procession  emerging  from 
the  kiva  and  marching  single-file  to  deposit,  with  much 
ceremony,  offerings  at  a  shrine.  At  six  in  the  evening 
of  the  eighth  day  a  picturesque  procession  winds 
down  the  trail  among  the  rocks  to  the  sacred  spring, 
where  polios  are  planted  and  rites  performed.  Then 
conies  the  stirring  event,  the  race  up  the  trail  to  the 
kiva.  Under  the  supervision  of  an  old  priest  an  even 
start  is  made  and  the  women  run  up  the  trail.  As 
Hopi  women  in  contrast  with  the  men  are  stout,  the 
chances  are  that  a  lithe,  clean-limbed  young  girl  will 
win  the  goal  over  her  breathless  sisters. 

At  daybreak  on  the  ninth  day  the  Lalakonti  race  is 
eagerly  awaited  by  the  spectators  and  by  the  Lakone 
maid,  who  stands  gorgeously  costumed,  basket  in  her 
hand,  on  the  trail  by  which  the  runners  will  come. 
As  the  dawn  brightens,  they  may  be  seen,  mere  specks 
on  the  trail  over  the  plain,  and  soon  they  run  up  the 
trail  to  the  villages  amid  great  excitement  and  ap 
plause  for  the  winner.  The  priestesses  have  marched 
to  the  dance  plaza,  where  they  form  a  circle,  and  as  the 
racers  come  they  rush  through  the  circle  and  this  act 
of  the  drama  is  over.  Later  in  the  day  comes  the 
public  dance,  when  the  circle  of  priestesses,  each  car- 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  161 

rying  a  basket  plaque,  again  forms  in  the  plaza  and 
begins  singing  in  chorus.  The  baskets  are  held  in  the 
two  hands  with  concave  side  to  the  front,  and  as  the 
song  continues  the  women  sway  their  bodies  and  raise 
the  baskets ,  slowly,  first  to  one  breast,  then  to  the 
other,  and  finally  bring  them  downward  to  a  line  with 
the  hips.  In  a  short  time  two  gorgeously  decorated 
maidens,  wearing  ceremonial  blankets  and  having 
bundles  on  their  backs,  advance  within  the  circle. 
All  interest  is  centered  in  them  as  they  untie  their 
bundles  and  stand  for  a  moment  at  opposite  sides  of 
the  circle,  holding  up  in  their  hands  a  basket,  and 
then  crossing  back  and  forth  and  exchanging  places. 
All  at  once  they  throw  their  baskets  high  in  the  air 
and  into  the  crowd  of  young  men.  Then  begins  a 
titanic  struggle  that  would  put  a  football  melee  in  the 
shade.  Fiercely  they  wrestle,  till  out  of  the  squirm 
ing,  perspiring,  now  ragged  mass  emerges  the  lucky 
young  man  with  a  much  damaged  basket  for  his  prize. 
Sometimes  these  struggles  last  a  long  time,  but  there 
is  no  slugging  and  no  blood  is  spilt,  and  there  is  a 
great  deal  of  jollity.  This  closes  the  Lalakonti  cere 
mony  and  the  celebrants  return  to  their  homes  to 
take  up  their  ordinary  avocations.  Supela  is  one  of 
the  two  men  who  aid  the  women  in  the  Lalakonti 
ceremony,  and  he  also  has  an  important  place  in  the 
Mamzrauti  ceremony,  described  below,  of  which  his 
wife,  Salako,  is  the  chief  priestess. 

The  Mamzrauti  ceremony,  held  at  the  October  moon, 


162  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

is  a  harvest  dance,  and  fortunate  are  the  Hopi  when 
they  can  celebrate  it  with  joyful  heart  and  abund 
ant  feasting.  The  Mamzrau  resembles  in  many  points 
the  Lalakonti,  but  the  differences  are  more  import 
ant.  A  sand  picture  is  made,  a  frame  of  painted 
slabs  erected  back  of  it,  and  fetiches  placed  around  the 
medicine  bowl  and  sand  picture.  Novices  are  initi 
ated  in  a  tedious  ceremony  lasting  through  several 
days,  and  messengers  are  sent  to  springs  and  shrines  to 
deposit  prayer-stick.  There  are  ceremonial  head 
washings  as  in  other  ceremonies,  and  various  secrtt 
rites  are  performed  in  the  kiva.  On  the  fourth  day 
the  final  initiation  of  the  novices  takes  place,  and  the 
priestesses  dance  around  a  pile  of  peaches  on  the  kiva 
floor,  and,  what  is  more,  enjoy  a  good  feast  of  this 
prized  fruit.  On  the  sixth  day  a  public  dance  is  held 
by  actors  who  imitate  certain  kachinas,  and  on  the  sev 
enth  day,  just  at  sunset,  the  priestesses,  some  disguised 
as  men,  dance  the  spirited  buffalo  dance.  On  the 
eighth  day,  disguised  as  clowns,  they  parade  around 
the  pueblo  and  are  attacked  by  the  men  who  throw 
water  none  too  clean  and  various  unpleasant  things 
upon  them,  and  after  much  noise  and  fun,  the  women 
run  home. 

There  is  no  dawn  race  on  the  morning  of  the  ninth 
day,  but  early  the  priestesses  hjave  donned  their  cos 
tumes  and  assemble  in  the  court  where  they  dance  and 
throw  green  cornstalks  among  the  men  who  crowd 
around.  Later  in  the  day  comes  the  concluding  dance, 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  163 

when  the  celebrants,  holding  gaily  painted  slabs  of 
wood  in  each  hand,  march  into  the  plaza  and  form  a 
horseshoe  figure  with  the  opening  toward  the  east. 
From  the  kiva  now  come  two  women  dressed  as  men, 
having  bows  and  arrows  in  their  hands.  As  they  ad 
vance  they  throw  before  them  a  package  of  corn  husks 
and  shoot  their  arrows  at  it,  the  act  representing  light 
ning  striking  and  fertilizing  the  fields.  Thus  they  ad 
vance  by  stages  to  the  circle  of  dancers  and  throw  the 
bundle  in  their  midst,  shooting  at  it,  then  shooting 
two  arrows  in  the  air  they  return  to  the  kiva.  In  a 
few  minutes  they  appear  again,  carrying  trays  of 
dumplings  of  sweet  corn  meal  which  they  toss  one  by 
one  to  the  eager  spectators.  Then  the  circle  of  dancers 
disperse,  but  again  and  again  throughout  the  day,  the 
distributors  return  to  dispense  their  offerings.  At 
sunset,  the  sand  pictures,  fetiches,  and  altar  slabs  are 
removed  by  Saalako  and  the  Mamzrau  is  over. 

At  night  there  is  a  serenade  by  two  parties  of  men, 
each  party  singing  loudly  as  though  to  drown  the 
voices  of  the  other.  This-  serenade  is  said  to  be  in 
honor  of  the  women  for  their  pious  celebration  of  the 
Mamzrau.6 

One  of  the  most  complicated  ceremonies  of  the  Hopi 
is  the  New  Fire,  which  occurs  in  November  at  five  of 
the  pueblos.  Every  fourth  year  the  ceremony  is  ex- 

u  The  Mamzranti :  A  Tusayan  Ceremony,  by  J.  Walter 
Fewkes  and  A.  M.  Stephen,  American  Anthropologist,  Vol. 
5,  No.  3,  July,  1892. 


164  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

tended  by  the  initiation  of  novices,  but  in  ordinary 
years  it  is  abbreviated.  Four  societies  take  part  and 
these  include  almost  every  male  adult  in  the  villages, 
so  there  is  no  lack  of  performers. 

The  first  event  that  is  noteworthy  is  the  making  of 
new  fire  by  two  of  the  societies.  Two  pairs  of  firo 
makers  each  place  a  piece  of  cottonwood  on  the  kiv-t 
floor  and  drill  upon  it  with  a  slender  rod  revolved  be 
tween  the  palms  of  the  hands,  until  the  friction  of  the 
drill  on  the  wood  ignites  the  dust  which  has  been 
ground  off.  The  little  coal  of  fire  is  fed  with  shredded 
bark  until  flame  is  produced;  from  this  the  fuel  on  the 
kiva  fireplace  is  lighted  and  with  a  bark  fuse  is  carried 
to  the  kivas  of  the  three  other  societies.  This  fire  is 
sacred  and  no  one  may  blow  upon  it,  or  take  a  ligbt 
from  it,  and  after  the  end  of  the  ceremony  it  is  suf 
fered  to  go  out  and  the  ashes  are  thrown  over  the  mesa 
with  prescribed  rites.  Sacrifices  of  pine  needles  are 
made  to  the  sacred  fire  soon  after  it  is  kindled.  Most 
of  the  Hopi  are  familiar  with  the  ancient  method  of 
making  fire  by  the  friction  of  wood,  and  it  is  not  many 
years  since  they  knew  no  other  way.  Now  matches 
of  a  particularly  sulphurous  variety  are  easy  to  get, 
and  the  primitive  fire  drill  is  in  force  only  in  the 
New  Fire  ceremony. 

From  day  to  day  there  are  processions  of  the  cele 
brating  societies,  who  dance  through  the  pueblo,  form 
ing  a  line  with  locked  hands  and  moving  with  a  side 
long  halting  step  forward  and  backward,  while  the 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  165 

women  from  the  houses  drench  them  with  water  and 
shout  rude  jests.  At  night  there  are  patrols  of  the 
celebrants,  who  ring  cowbells  or  beat  on  tin  cans  and 
make  night  hideous.  The  novices  take  their  nocturnal 
rounds  at  breakneck  speed  led  by  a  priest,  somewhat 
in  the  way  of  a  college  initiation.  These  poor  fellows 
have  a  hard  life  of  fasting  and  vigils;  one  of  their 
ordeals  is  to  go  to  a  mountain  about  fifteen  miles  away 
to  dig  soap  root  and  white  earth  with  which  they 
return  gaunt  and  worn. 

This  ceremony  presents  more  life  and  public  exhi 
bition  than  almost  any  other  in  Hopiland,  hence  a  de 
scription  of  it  in  brief  compass  is  impossible.  To  an 
onlooker  it  must  exhibit  a  chaos  of  acts  by  the  four 
powerful  fraternities  that  perform  it,  a  bewildering 
pageant  by  day  and  alarms  and  sallying  forth  by 
night,  with  rites  also  in  progress  in  all  the  kivas. 

The  meaning  of  the  New  Fire  Ceremony  is  obscure, 
but  it  seems  in  our  present  knowledge  to  be  a  prayer 
to  the  Germ  God  for  fertility  of  human  beings,  animals, 
and  crops.  The  Germ  Gods,  earth  gods,  and  fire  gods 
are  to  be  placated  and  honored  by  these  rites,  and  no 
doubt  the  new  fire  ceremonies  of  all  times  and  peoples 
were  held  with  such  intent,  for  the  relation  of  life  and 
fire  was  a  philosophic  observation  of  the  remote  past. 
With  this  ceremony  the  round  of  the  year  has  been 
finished  and  the  Hopi  are  ready  to  begin  again.7 

7  The  Naac-nai-ya.  By  J.  Walter  Fewkes  and  A.  M. 
Stephen;  Jour.  American  Folk-Lore,  Vol.  5,  1892.  The  Tusa- 


166  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

The  Yayawimpkia  are  fire  priests  who  heal  by  fire. 
They  are  experts  in  the  art  of  making  fire  by  drilling 
with  a  stick  on  a  bit  of  wood  and  they  perform  this 
act  in  the  Sumaikoli  or  Little  New  Fire  Ceremony. 
There  are  few  of  them  remaining,  and  their  services 
are  sometimes  called  for  when  a  burn  is  to  be  treat 
ed,  or  some  such  matter.  One  woman  whose  breast 
had  been  blistered  by  a  too  liberal  application 
of  kerosene  was  healed  by  the  Yaya,  who  filled  his 
mouth  with  soot  and  spurted  the  fluid  over  the  burn, 
the  theory  of  the  Yaya  being  that  wounds  made  by 
fire  should  be  checked  by  fire  or  the  products  of  fire. 

The  Yaya  priests  are  supposed  to  be  able  to  bring 
to  life  people  who  have  been  killed  in  accidents. 
There  is  a  story  that  a  man  who  was  pushed  off  the 
high  mesa  upon  the  rocks  below  was  restored  to  his 
friends  by  the  magical  power  of  the  Yaya.  Other 
fabulous  stories,  always  placed  among  the  happenings 
of  the  past,  tell  of  the  wonderful  doings  of  the  Yaya. 
The  Hopi  relate  that  one  Yaya  standing  at  the  edge 
of  the  mesa  said:  "Do  you  see  that  butte  over  yon 
der  [the  Giant's  Chair,  30  miles  distant]  ;  it  is  black, 
is  it  not?  I  will  paint  it  white."  So  with  a  lump  of 
kaolin  the  Yaya  made  magical  passes  skyward,  and  be 
hold,  the  mountain  was  white !  A  brother  Yaya  said, 

yan  New  Fire  Ceremony,  by  J.  Walter  Fewkes;  Proc.  Bost. 
Society  Nat.  Hist.,  Vol.  26,  1895.  The  New  Fire  Ceremony  at 
Walpi,  by  J.  Walter  Fewkes;  Am.  Anthropologist  (N.  S.),  Vol. 
2,  Jan.,  1900. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  167 

'  *  I  will  make  it  black  again ! ' '  So  with  soot  he  made 
magical  passes  horizonward,  and  behold,  the  butte  re 
sumed  again  its  natural  color ! 

Notwithstanding  the  style  of  these  stories,  of  which 
there  are  many,  the  fire-priests  do  perform  wonderful 
feats  of  juggling  and  legerdemain,  especially  in  win 
ter  when  abbreviated  ceremonies  are  held.  On  ac 
count  of  these  performances  of  sleight-of-hand  and 
deception  the  Hopi  are  renowned  as  jugglers  and  have 
a  reputation  extending  far  and  wide  over  the  South 
west. 

Besides  the  Yaya  there  are  many  other  medicine- 
men,  or  shamans,  who  relieve  persons  afflicted  by  sor 
cerers. 

The  sufferer  believes  that  a  sorcerer  has  shot  with 
his  span-long  bow  an  old  turquoise  bead  or  arrowhead 
into  some  part  of  his  body.  He,  therefore,  summons 
one  of  his  shamans  to  relieve  him.  A  single  shaman 
is  called  Tu  hi  ky  a,  "the  one  who  knows  by  feeling  or 
touching. '  *  The  first  treatment  adopted  to  relieve  the 
sufferer  is  to  pass  an  eagle  feather,  held  by  the  shaman 
in  his  fingers,  over  the  body  of  the  afflicted  person  un 
til  the  shaman  asserts  he  feels  and  locates  the  missile. 

The  term  applied  to  more  than  one  of  these  shamans 
is  Poboctu  or  eye  seekers.  In  the  concluding  part  of 
the  conjuring,  in  which  more  than  one  person  usually 
engages,  the  shamans  move  around  peering  and  gazing 
everywhere,  until  they  determine  the  direction  in 
which  the  malign  influence  lies.  I  have  been  in 
formed  by  Mr.  Stephen  that  he  saw  them  engaged  over 
a  victim  in  Sitcumovi  many  3rears  ago  and  that  they 


168  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

cleverly  pretended  to  take  out  of  the  sufferer's  breas : 
a  stone  arrowhead  half  the  size  of  the  hand.8 

One  may  chance  to  see,  even  yet,  a  patient  being 
treated  for  headache  or  some  minor  ailment.  The; 
method  is  very  like  massage,  the  eyebrows,  forehead, 
temples  and  root  of  the  nose  being  rubbed  with, 
straight  strokes  or  passes,  with  occasional  pressure  a-; 
certain  points,  while  a  preternatural  gravity  is  main 
tained  by  the  operator. 

"The  Hopi  ideas  and  customs  as  to  animals  connected 
with  their  religious  observances  form  an  interesting 
and  picturesque  feature  of  their  life.  An  account  oir 
some  of  the  more  striking  customs  in  this  regard  fol- 
laws: 

A  few  years  ago  a  story  went  the  rounds  about  a 
Hopi  and  his  eagle  which  a  Navaho  had  taken.  It  was 
related  that  the  Hopi  hurried  to  the  agent  with  his 
grievance  and  secured  a  written  order  commanding 
the  Navaho  to  restore  the  bird.  With  considerable- 
temerity  the  Hopi  presented  the  "talk  paper"  to  the 
lordly  Navaho,  and  as  might  have  been  expected  got  no 
satisfaction.  This  story  produced  a  great  deal  of 
amusement  at  the  time,  but  no  one  realized  that  there 
was  embodied  history,  folk-lore,  religious  custom,  tribal 
organization,  archeology,  and  a  number  of  other  mat 
ters  recently  made  clear  by  Dr.  J.  Walter  Fewkes.9 

8  Dr.    J.    "Walter    Fewkes,    Journal    of    American  Ethnology 
and  Archaeology,  Vol.  IT,  Boston,  1892.  p.  157. 

9  Property-Bight  in   Eagles   among  the  Hopi;    Am.   Anthro 
pologist,  N.  S.,  Vol.  IT,  Oct.-Decv  1900. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  169 

It  transpired  that  the  Navaho  had  not  bodily  and 
by  force  seized  an  eagle  which  the  Hopi  had  captured 
by  his  craft,  though  one  not  knowing  the  relations  be 
tween  those  desert  neighbors  might  have  so  thought. 
On  the  contraiy,  the  Navaho  had  taken  the  eagle  from 
STL  eyrie  on  a  mountain  many  miles  away  from  the 
Hopi  villages,  not  dreaming  of  poaching  on  anyone's 
preserves. 

He  would  probably  care  as  little  to  know  that  the 
Snake  clan  claims  the  eagle  nests  near  their  old  village 
of  Tokonabi  to  the  north  of  Walpi;  the  Horn  clan 
those  to  the  northeast ;  the  Firewood  clan  those  at  the 
upper  end  of  Keam's  Canyon;  the  Bear  clan  those  at 
the  mouth  of  the  same  canyon ;  the  Tobacco  clan  those 
on  the  crags  of  Awatobi ;  the  Rain  Cloud  clan  the  nests 
in  the  Moki  Buttes ;  the  Reed  clan  those  in  the  region 
of  their  'old  town  forty  miles  north  of  Navajo  Springs 
on  the  Santa  Fe  railroad ;  the  Lizard  clan  the  nests  on 
Bitahuchi  or  Red  Rocks,  about  forty  miles  south  of 
Walpi;  or  that  the  eagle  nests  west  of  the  pueblos 
along  the  Little  Colorado  and  Great  Colorado  belong 
to  the  Oraibi  and  Middle  Mesa  villagers.  He  would 
disdain  the  fact  that  one  cannot  meddle  with  eagles 
within  forty  or  fifty  miles  of  the  Hopi  towns  without 
trespassing  on  property  rights. 

The  curious  fact  comes  out  that  these  eagle  preserves 
are  near  the  place  of  ancient  occupancy  of  the  clans, 
and  show  in  a  most  interesting  way  the  lines  of  migra 
tion  bv  which  the  several  clans  traveled  to  the  vil- 


170  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

lages  where  they  now  live.  These  rights  are  jealously 
guarded  by  the  Hopi  and  are  one  of  the  sore  spots  in 
their  relations  with  the  Navaho;  they  frequently  ask 
to  have  the  Government  define  their  eagle  reservations 
by  survey  to  establish  the  boundaries  free  from  moles 
tation. 

It  may  be  well  to  say  here  that  the  eagle  is  a  Hopi 
sacred  bird  and  one  of  the  most  important.  Its 
feathers,  like  those  of  the  turkey,  parrot,  and  other 
birds,  are  of  especial  use  in  the  religious  ceremonies. 
The  downy  plumes  moving  at  the  faintest  breath  are 
thought  to  be  efficacious  in  carrying  to  the  nature 
gods  the  prayers  of  their  humble  worshippers. 

Among  the  sacred  hunts  that  of  the  eagle  was  one 
of  the  most  ancient  as  well  as  important.  Small  cir 
cular  stone  towers  about  four  feet  in  height  were 
built  and  across  the  top  were  laid  beams  to  which  were 
tied  dead  rabbits  as  a  bait.  Perhaps  the  mysterious 
towers  of  the  Mancos  and  of  the  north  in  Colorado 
may  be  explained  in  this  light.  Within  the  tower  the 
hunter  hid  after  a  ceremonial  head  washing  symbolic 
of  purification,  and  the  deposit  of  a  prayer-offering  at 
a  shrine.  The  eagle,  attracted  by  the  rabbits,  circled 
around  and  at  last  launched  himself  upon  his  prey. 
When  he  had  fastened  his  talons  in  a  rabbit  the  con 
cealed  hunter  reached  through  the  beams  and  grasped 
the  king  of  the  air  by  the  legs  and  made  him  captive, 
taking  him  to  the  village  where  a  cage  was  provided 
for  his  reception.  At  each  hunt  one  eagle  was  lib- 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  171 

erated  after  a  prayer-stick  had  been  tied  to  his  thigh 
in  the  belief  that  the  bird  would  carry  the  prayer  to 
the  mighty  beings  with  whom  he  was  supposed  to  be 
on  familiar  terms. 

This  describes  the  method  pursued  formerly  and 
which  some  of  the  old  men  have  witnessed.  Now  the 
Hopi  eagle  hunters  take  upon  themselves  the  difficult 
and  somewhat  hazardous  task  of  visiting  the  eyries 
to  seize  the  eaglets.  Not  all  are  taken  from  the  nest, 
since  a  wise  prohibition  requires  that  some  be  left  to 
continue  the  species.  The  eaglets  are  brought  to  the 
pueblo,  where  their  heads  are  washed  with  due  cere 
mony,  and  they  are  sprinkled  with  sacred  meal.  Then 
the  feathers  are  plucked  out  and  the  birds  are  killed 
by  pressure  on  the  breastbone  so  as  not  to  shed  blood, 
and  they  are  buried  in  a  special  cemetery  in  a  cleft 
among  the  rocks  where  a  few  stones  are  put  upon  the 
bodies  after  the  ritual.  At  the  close  of  the  ceremony 
of  the  departure  of  the  gods,  called  the  Niman,  or  Fare 
well  ceremony,  small  painted  wooden  dolls  and  little 
bows  and  arrows  are  placed  upon  the  eagle  graves  and 
liberally  sprinkled  with  sacred  meal. 

But  this  does  not  end  the  Hopi  eagle  customs.  Near 
the  school  at  Dawapa,  below  Walpi,  one  may  stumble 
upon  a  collection  of  oval  objects  of  wood,  placed 
among  rocks,  some  weathered  and  some  bearing  traces 
of  spots  of  white  paint  and  feathers.  He  may  learn 
also  that  this  is  an  eagle  shrine  and  that  these  wooden 
eggs  are  prayers  for  the  increase  of  eagles  prepared 


172  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

during  the  Soyaluna  or  Winter  Solstice  ceremony. 
At  present  figurines  of  the  domestic  animals  are  also 
offered  for  the  same  purpose.  Perhaps  we  have  here 
a  step  toward  the  domestication  of  animals  which  was 
carried  out  with  the  turkey,  parrot,  and  dog.  In  any 
case,  however,  there  is  shown  the  veneration  of  the 
Hopi  for  the  birds  of  the  air  and  especially  the  eagle, 
which  is  honored  in  the  symbols  of  so  many  peoples. 

Among  the  sacred  animals  of  the  Hopi  the  turkey  is 
of  great  importance.  In  accord  with  the  belief  that 
the  markings  on  the  tail  feathers  were  caused  by  the 
foam  and  slime  of  an  ancient  deluge,  the  feathers  are 
prescribed  for  all  pahos ;  since  through  their  mythical 
association  with  water  they  have  great  power  in  bring 
ing  rain.  The  Spanish  Conquerors  of  the  sixteenth 
centuiy  when  they  visited  the  pueblos  spoke  of  *  *  cocks 
with  great  hanging  chins"  they  saw  there,  and  this  is 
the  first  notice  of  the  bird  for  which  the  world  is  in 
debted  to  America.  In  the  villages  turkeys  roam 
around  without  restraint  and  become  household  pets. 
Sometimes  also  they  dispute  the  entrance  of  a  village 
by  a  stranger  and  put  him  to  a  great  deal  of  annoy 
ance  by  their  attacks,  which  are  usually  in  the  nature 
of  a  surprise  from  the  rear.  At  present  the  Hopi 
keep  them  for  their  feathers,  which  are  plucked  as  oc 
casion  requires,  so  that  the  village  turkey  commonly 
has  a  ragged  appearance. 

There  were  ceremonial  antelope  hunts  before  cattle 
and  horses  destroyed  the  grass  on  the  ranges  and  while 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  173 

these  members  of  the  deer  tribe  were  plentiful.  One 
of  the  most  beautiful  flowers  of  the  Southwest,  the 
scarlet  gilia,  is  thought  to  be  especially  liked  by  the 
antelope,  and  tradition  says  that  for  this  reason  the 
hunter  formerly  ground  up  the  flowers  with  sacred 
meal  and  made  offerings  with  it  for  success  in  hunting 
that  graceful  animal.  Remains  of  extensive  stake 
fences  and  corrals  built  by  the  Navaho  for  driving 
the  antelope  are  to  be  seen  south  of  the  Hopi  Reserva 
tion.  One  of  these  is  called  the  t '  Chindi  corral, ' '  be 
cause  the  Navaho  say  that  in  the  last  great  hunt  those 
who  ate  of  the  antelope  captured  were  made  sick  and 
many  died.  Hence  no  Navaho  will  camp  in  this  be 
witched  corral  or  use  a  piece  of  the  wood  for  camp 
fires,  no  matter  how  great  the  necessity. 

The  Hopi  sometimes  hunted  the  antelope  by  driving, 
but  usually  relied  on  surprise,  fleetness  of  foot,  the 
bow  and  arrow,  and  the  boomerang.  No  doubt  the 
deer  and  great  elk  were  ceremonially  hunted  in  the 
old  days  of  tradition.  There  is  little  reason  to  believe 
that  the  Hopi  vegetarians  have  for  centuries  gained 
more  than  a  flavor  of  animal  food  to  vary  their  diet. 
Formerly  the  antelope  must  have  been  more  impor 
tant,  though  always  difficult  to  capture.  Now,  the 
Hopi  perforce  hunt  rabbits,  as  the  tabo  or  cottontail 
and  the  sowi  or  jackrabbit  alone  of  all  the  game  ani 
mals  survive  in  this  region. 

If  one  chances  to  see  a  hunting  party  set  out  or  to 
encounter  them  in  active  chase  he  will  have  a  novel 


174  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

experience  and  wonder  what  all  the  screaming,  bark 
ing  of  dogs,  and  running  hither  and  thither  mean,  if 
he  does  not  fear  that  he  has  met  the  Peaceful  People 
on  the  warpath.  The  hunters  smeared  with  clay  pre 
sent  a  strange  appearance.  In  their  hands  they  carry 
bow  and  arrows,  boomerangs  of  oak,  and  various  clubs 
and  sticks.  One  of  the  party  is  delegated  to  carry  the 
rabbits,  and  he  usually  rides  a  burro.  In  and  out 
among  the  rocks  of  the  mesa  sides  they  skirmish  like 
coyotes  and  with  quite  as  fiendish  noise.  Babbits 
have  little  chance  unless  they  take  to  earth,  and  even 
then  the  Hopi  stop  to  dig  or  twist  them  out.  Such  a 
hunt  means  sixty  or  seventy  miles,  perhaps,  of  hard 
work  before  the  hunters  dash  up  the  home  mesa  with 
their  game  to  "feed  the  eagles"  or  for  some  othei 
ceremonial  purpose. 

Some  of  the  ceremonial  hunts  bring  out  as  many  as 
a  hundred  Hopi,  and  in  such  case  those  on  horse  or  bur 
ro  or  afoot  drive  the  rabbits  into  a  narrowing  circle  and 
close  in  with  an  exciting  melee  that  displays  more  en 
ergy  than  a  football  game.  If  for  any  reason  the  rab 
bits  are  scarce  and  the  result  of  a  hunt  is  small,  the 
Hopi  return  somewhat  dejected  and  have  little  to  say, 
but  if  the  sowimaktu  has  been  a  success  they  make  a 
triumphant  entry  with  much  shouting  and  exultant 
song. 

In  walking  about  the  pueblos  one  sees  many  things 
connected  with  the  religious  life  of  the  Hopi,  especial 
ly  shrines.  An  account  of  the  more  notable  of  these 
may  prove  of  interest. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  175 

It  is  not  often  granted  one  to  stand  at  the  center  of 
the  world.  The  feeling  ought  not  to  be  different  from 
that  occasioned  by  standing  at  any  other  place  on  the 
earth,  but  in  the  presence  of  the  shrine  by  which  the 
Walpians  mark  that  mysterious  spot  a  number  of  in 
quiries  spring  up  in  the  mind.  At  Jerusalem,  at 
Mecca,  and  at  perhaps  a  hundred  other  places  are  au 
thentic  earth  centers,  each  fixed  by  edicts  of  church  or 
the  last  word  of  wise  men  and  upheld  against  all 
comers.  The  disputes  over  the  center  of  the  world  in 
the  times  before  men  knew  that  the  world  was  round 
are  amusing  to  enlightened  nineteenth  century  people. 

The  Hopi  felt  the  need  of  an  earth  center  just  as 
other  benighted  folks  did  in  early  times,  so  beneath 
the  mesa  cliffs  among  the  rocks  they  placed  their  shrine 
and  bestowed  their  offerings.  Just  what  the  Hopi  be 
lieve  about  this  particular  shrine  no  doubt  would  be 
very  interesting. 

Other  shrines  abound  near  each  pueblo  and  are 
likely  to  be  happened  upon  in  out-of-the-way  places 
among  the  rocks  where  the  offerings  are  scattered 
about,  some  new  with  fresh  paint  and  feathers  and 
some  much  weather-worn.  Near  the  Sun  Spring  at 
Walpi  there  is  a  spot  where  many  rounded  blocks  of 
wood  lie  on  the  ground.  This  is  the  Eagle  Shrine  and 
the  bits  of  wood  represent  eagle  eggs ;  the  green  paint 
and  cotton  string  with  the  prayer  feather  decorating 
them  soon  disappear  in  the  sun  and  wind. 

While  it  is  not  good  policy  to  pry  around  these 


176  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

sacred  places,  knowing  that  the  keen  eyes  of  the  Ho-pi 
watch  from  the  mesa  top,  yet  casually  some  of  the 
more  interesting  shrines  may  be  visited. 

At  the  point  of  the  Walpi  mesa  where  the  old  town 
stood  several  centuries  ago,  are  several  shrines,  to  one 
of  which  the  kachinas  after  the  ceremonies  go  in  order- 
to  deposit  their  wreaths  of  pine  brought  from  the  San 
Francisco  Mountains  and  to  make  ^'breath-feather'1 
offerings  of  paint  and  meal.  Here  also  they  niakt 
offerings  of  food  to  the  dead.  At  another  spot  tht 
bushes  are  hung  with  little  disks  of  painted  gourd 
each  with  a  feather  representing  the  squash  flower. 

A  heap  of  small  stones  is  a  Mas  a  uah  shrine,  and  e 
stone  is  added  by  each  one  who  passes  as  an  offering* 
to  the  terrible  god  of  the  earth,  death,  and  fire.  No 
orthodox  Hopi  would  dare  to  omit  throwing  a  stone 
accompanied  with  a  prayer  to  Masauah,  of  whom  all 
speak  in  fear  and  with  bated  breath.  For  a  good  rea 
son,  then,  many  shrines  to  this  god  may  be  seen  in 
Hopiland,  as  it  is  necessary  to  appease  this  avenging 
being. 

Everyone  who  goes  to  Walpi  sees  the  great  shrine  in 
the  gap  which  is  called  the  "shrine  of  the  end  of  the 
trail."  The  base  and  sides  are  large  slabs  of  stone, 
and  within  are  various  odd-shaped  stones  surrounding 
a  coiled  fossil  believed  by  the  Hopi  to  be  a  stone  ser 
pent.  During  the  winter  Sun  ceremony  this  whole 
stone  box  blossoms  with  feathered  prayer-sticks,  al 
most  hiding  the  shrine,  and  converting  it  into  a  thing 
of  beauty. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  177 

Other  holy  places,  most  of  them  ruins  of  abandoned 
towns,  are  visited  at  times  by  this  people,  who  cheer 
fully  make  long  journeys  to  mountains  and  running 
streams  for  sacred  water,  pine  boughs,  or  herbs.  They 
carry  with  them  feather  prayer-sticks  and  sacred  meal 
as  offerings  to  the  gods  of  the  place.  One  of  the 
streams  from  which  holy  water  is  brought  is  Clear 
Cjcfiek  near  the  town  of  Winslow,  seventy-five  miles 
south  of  Walpi. 

Each  field  has  a  shrine  and  pahos  are  often  seen 
there;  this  is  also  the  custom  among  the  Zuni  and 
other  of  the  Pueblos.  In  the  center  of  the  main  plaza 
of  each  pueblo  may  be  seen  a  stone  box  with  a  slab  of 
stone  for  a  door  which  opens  to  the  east.  This  is 
called  the  pahoki,  or  "house  of  the  pahos/7  the  central 
shrine  of  the  village,  and  it  is  carefully  sealed  up  when 
not  in  use. 

It  is  to  be  expected  that  the  shrines  of  the  ancient 
pueblos  would  have  vanished,  and  it  is  true  that  such 
remains  are  the  rarest  encountered  in  exploring  ruins. 
Still  a  few  traces  reward  a  careful  search  in  the  out 
skirts  of  many  of  the  ruins.  A  shrine  made  of  slabs 
of  stone  painted  with  symbolic  designs  of  the  rain 
cloud  was  found  at  the  ancient  town  of  Awatobi,  and 
is  now  in  the  National  Museum. 

In  caves  and  rock  recesses  of  the  mesas  are  depos 
its  of  the  sacred  belongings  of  the  societies.  These 
places,  while  not  shrines  perhaps,  are  kept  inviolably 
sacred,  and  no  curious  white  visitors  have  peered  into 


178  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOP1LAND 

them,  even  those  highest  in  the  good  gra-ces  of  the 
priests. 

Once  by  chance  two  explorers  came  upon  such  a 
treasure  house  and  with  some  trepidation  took  a  photo 
graph  of  it.  In  a  dark  cleft  under  the  rocks  were 
the  jars  in  which  the  "  snake  medicine ''  is  carried 
These  were  arranged  without  much  order  near  a  most 
remarkable  carved  stone  figure  of  Talatumsi,  the 
"dawn  goddess/'  painted  and  arrayed  in  the  costume 
of  that  deity.  In  truth,  this  little  cavern  had  a  grue 
some  look,  and  knowing  also  the  prohibition  against 
prying,  one  breathed  more  freely  on  getting  away 
from  the  neighborhood. 

Though  the  Hopi  may  have  no  house  shrines,  and 
this  is  said  with  caution,  because  not  much  is  known  of 
their  domestic  life,  yet  in  some  of  the  houses  are  rude 
stone  images  which  are  venerated.  These  images  may 
be  household  gods  like  the  Lares  and  Penates  of  the 
ancients.  No  one  would  be  surprised  to  know  that 
the  Hopi  hold  the  fireplace  sacred  and  make  sacrifice 
to  it  as  the  shrine  of  Masauah,  the  dread  ruler  of  the 
underworld. 

So  while  our  towns  have  interesting  churches  and 
historical  buildings,  none  of  them  can  compete  with 
the  high  houses  of  the  Hopi  surrounded  by  primitive 
shrines  to  the  nature  gods,  who,  in  their  simple  belief, 
protect  the  people  and  send  the  rains  which  insure 
abundant  harvests. 


VIII 
MYTHS 

As  yet  the  myths  of  the  Hopi  have  not  been  sys 
tematically  collected,  hence  our  view  of  the  deeper 
workings  of  the  Hopi  mind  is  a  limited  one.  No  ob 
server  familiar  with  the  language  has  lived  with  the 
Good  People  in  order  to  hear  from  the  wrinkled  sages 
the  tales  of  beginnings  and  the  explanations  of  things 
that  must  be  stored  in  their  minds,  if  the  fragmentary 
utterances  that  are  extant  may  give  indication.  A 
few  myths  collated  principally  from  the  writings  of 
Dr.  J.  Walter  Fewkes  are  given  as  examples,  display 
ing  the  range  and  depth  of  the  imagination  of  these 
Indians.16 

In  the  early  days  when  the  world  was  young,  many 
monsters,  most  of  whom  were  hostile  to  man,  roamed 
the  earth  or  infested  the  sky,  and  particularly 
harassed  the  Hopi.  These  monsters  were  gigantic  in 
size  and  possessed  special  weapons  of  tremendous 
power  to  assist  them  in  their  supernatural  craft. 
Long  the  people  groaned  under  the  ravages  of  the 

1°  Since  writing  this  Rev.  H.  R.  Voth  has  published  a  valua 
ble  collection  of  folk-tales  and  myths.  Field  Mus.  Pub.  96. 


180  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

monsters,  and  the  time  and  manner  of  their  deliver 
ance  they  delight  to  recount  in  many  weird  stories 
during  the  winter  nights  by  their  flickering  fires  of 
pifion  wood. 

In  the  earth  lived  the  Spider  Woman,  ancient  of 
days,  full  of  wisdom,  and  having  a  tender  regard  for 
her  people,  the  Hopi.  Born  to  her  from  a  light-ray 
and  a  drop  of  rain  were  the  Twins;  one,  the  son  of 
light,  was  the  little  war-god  called  the  Youth;  the 
other  was  Echo,  the  son  of  the  cloud. 

The  Youth  became  the  savior  of  the  people;  his 
heroic  deeds  of  the  old  times  in  slaying  the  monsters 
cause  him  still  to  be  held  in  reverence  by  the  Hopi 
and  remembered  in  their  ceremonies. 

The  conquests  of  the  Twins  gave  rise  to  many 
strange  adventures.  The  transformation  of  the  man- 
eagle  by  the  Twins  is  a  favorite  legend  of  the  Hopi. 

In  the  above,  in  the  heart  of  the  sky,  lived  the 
Man-Eagle.  On  the  people  of  the  wrhole  earth  he 
swooped  down,  carrying  aloft  women  and  maidens 
to  his  house,  where  after  four  days  he  devoured  them. 
The  Youth,  journeying  to  the  San  Francisco  Moun 
tains,  met  at  the  foot-hills  the  Pinon  maids  dressed 
in  mantles  of  pinon  bark  and  grass,  and  here  like 
wise  he  met  the  Spider  Woman  and  the  Mole.  ' '  You 
have  come,"  said  they  in  greeting;  "sit  down;  whence 
go  you?"  Then  said  the  Youth,  "Man-Eagle  has 
carried  away  my  bride  and  I  seek  to  bring  hrr  back." 
"I  will  aid  you,"  said  the  Spider  Woman. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  181 

She  bade  the  Pinon  maids  to  gather  pinon  gum, 
wash  it,  and  make  a  garment  in  exact  imitation  of 
the  flint  arrow  head  armor  which  rendered  Man- 
Eagle  invulnerable.  So  did  they,  and  the  Spider 
Woman  gave  it,  with  charm  flour,  to  the  Youth.  As  a 
spider,  then,  so  small  as  to  be  invisible,  she  perched 
on  the  right  ear  of  the  Youth  that  she  might  whisper 
advice.  Mole  led  the  way  to  the  top  of  the  moun 
tains,  but  the  Pinon  maids  remained  behind. 

When  they  reached  the  summit,  Eagle  swooped 
down ;  they  got  on  his  back  and  he  soared  aloft  with 
them  till  he  was  tired.  Hawk  came  close  by,  and  on 
his  back  he  carried  them  still  higher  in  the  sky.  When 
he  was  weary,  Gray  Hawk  took  them  and  mounted  to 
the  heavens  with  them  till  he  could  go  no  farther,  and 
Red  Hawk  received  the  burden ;  thus,  for  an  immense 
distance,  upward  they  flew,  until  the  adventurers 
reached  a  chasm  in  the  sky  through  which  the  Youth, 
Spider  Woman,  and  Mole  passed,  and  saw  the  great 
white  house  in  which  Man-Eagle  lived. 

The  ladder  which  led  into  the  house  had  for  rungs 
sharp  flint  knives.  The  Spider  Woman  advised  the 
Youth,  before  mounting  the  ladder,  to  gather  a  hand 
ful  of  sumach  berries  and  give  them  to  Lizard,  who 
received  them  with  thanks,  chewed  them  and  gave 
him  back  the  cud.  The  Youth  rubbed  the  sharp  rungs 
with  the  chewed  berries  and  they  became  dull  at  once, 
and  he  was  able  to  climb  the  ladder  without  cutting 
him  self.  When  he  entered  the  house  of  Man-Eagle 


182  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

he  saw  hanging  the  monster's  flint  arrow  head  armor, 
on  a  peg  in  a  recess,  and  he  at  once  exchanged  it  for 
the  false  armor  the  Pifion  maids  had  given  him.  In 
another  recess  he  saw  Man-Eagle  and  his  lost  wife. 
He  called  out  to  her  that  he  had  come  to  rescue  her 
from  the  monster,  and  she  replied  that  she  was  glad, 
but  that  he  could  not  do  so,  as  no  one  ever  left  the 
place  alive.  The  Youth  replied,  "Have  no  fear;  you 
will  soon  be  mine  again." 

The  Spider  Woman's  charm  was  so  powerful  that 
the  Man-Eagle  did  not  hear  what  was  said,  but  he 
soon  awoke,  and  put  on  the  imitation  flint  armor  with 
out  detecting  the  fraud.  He  then  for  the  first  time 
became  aware  of  the  Youth's  presence,  and  demanded 
what  he  wished.  "I  have  come  to  take  my  wife 
home,"  answered  the  hero.  Man-Eagle  said,  "We 
must  gamble  to  decide  that,  and  if  you  lose  I  shall 
slay  you,"  to  which  the  Youth  agreed.  Man-Eagle 
brought  out  a  huge  pipe,  larger  than  a  man's  head, 
and  having  filled  it  with  tobacco,  gave  it  to  the  hero, 
saying,  "You  must  smoke  this  entirely  out,  and  if 
you  become  dizzy  or  nauseated,  you  lose. ' '  So  the 
Youth  lit  the  pipe  and  smoked,  but  exhaled  nothing. 
He  kept  the  pipe  aglow  and  swallowed  all  the  smoke 
and  felt  no  ill  effect,  for  he  passed  it  through  his 
body  into  an  underground  passageway  that  Mole  had 
dug.  Man-Eagle  was  amazed  and  asked  what  had  be 
come  of  the  snioke.  The  Youth,  going  to  the  door, 
showed  him  great  clouds  of  dense  smoke  issuing  from 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  183 

the  four  cardinal  points,  and  the  monster  saw  that  he 
had  lost. 

But  Man-P^agle  tried  a  second  time  with  the  hero. 
He  brought  two  deer-antlers,  saying,  "We  will  each 
choose  one,  and  he  who  fails  to  break  the  one  he 
chooses  loses. ' ?  The  antler  which  he  laid  down  on  the 
northwest  side  was  a  real  antler,  but  that  on  the 
southeast  was  an  imitation  made  of  brittle  wood. 
Spider  Woman  prompted  the  Youth  to  demand  the 
first  choice,  but  Man-Eagle  refused  him  that  right. 
After  the  youth  had  insisted  four  times,  Man-Eagle 
yielded,  and  the  hero  chose  the  brittle  antler  and  tore 
its  prongs  asunder,  but  Man-Eagle  could  not  break 
the  real  antler,  and  thus  lost  a  second  time. 

Man-Eagle  had  two  fine,  large  pine  trees  growing 
near  his  house,  and  said  to  the  hero,  * i  You  choose  one 
of  these  trees  and  I  will  take  the  other,  and  whoever 
plucks  one  up  by  the  roots  shall  win."  Now  Mole 
had  burrowed  under  one  of  them  and  had  gnawed 
through  all  its  roots,  cutting  them  off;  and  had  run 
through  his  tunnel  and  was  sitting  at  its  mouth,  peer 
ing  through  the  grass,  anxious  to  see  the  Youth  win. 
The  hero,  with  the  help  of  his  grandmother,  chose  the 
tree  that  Mole  had  prepared  and  plucked  it  up,  and 
threw  it  over  the  cliff,  but  Man-Eagle  struggled  with 
the  other  tree  and  could  not  move  it,  so  he  was  un 
happy  in  his  third  defeat. 

Then  Man-Eagle  spread  a  great  supply  of  food  on 
the  floor  and  said  to  the  Youth  that  he  must  eat  all 


184  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

at  one  sitting.  The  Youth  sat  and  ate  all  the  meat, 
bread,  and  porridge,  emptying  one  food  basin  after 
another,  and  showed  no  sign  of  being  satisfied  before 
all  was  consumed ;  for  Mole  had  again  aided  him  and 
dug  a  large  hole  below  to  receive  it,  and  the  Youth 
was  a  winner  the  fourth  time. 

Man-Eagle  then  made  a  great  wood-pile  and  direct 
ed  the  Youth  to  sit  upon  it,  saying  he  would  ignite  it 
and  that  if  he  were  unharmed  he  would  submit  him 
self  to  the  same  test.  The  Youth  took  his  allotted 
place,  and  Man-Eagle  set  fire  to  the  pile  of  wood  at 
the  four  cardinal  points,  and  it  speedily  was  ablaze. 
The  arrow-heads  of  which  the  flint  armor  was  made 
were  coated  with  ice,  which  melted  so  that  water 
trickled  down  and  prevented  the  Youth  from  being 
burnt,  and  all  the  wood-pile  was  consumed,  leaving 
the  Youth  unharmed. 

The  monster  was  filled  with  wonder  and  grieved 
very  much  when  he  saw  the  Youth  making  another 
great  pile  of  wood.  Still  thinking  that  he  wore  his 
fire-proof  suit,  he  mounted  the  wood-pile,  which  the 
Youth  lit  at  the  four  cardinal  points.  The  fuel  blazed 
up,  and  as  soon  as  the  fire  caught  the  imitation  armor 
of  gum,  it  ignited  with  a  flash  and  the  monster  was 
consumed.  At  the  prompting  of  the  Spider  Woman, 
the  Youth  approached  the  ashes,  took  the  charm  in  his 
mouth,  and  spurted  it  over  them,  when  suddenly  a 
handsome  man  arose.  The  Spider  Woman  said  to  him, 
"Will  you  refrain  from  killing  people,  and  will  you 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  185 

forsake  your  evil  habits?"  The  Man-Eagle  assented 
with  a  fervent  promise,  and  the  Youth,  rejoicing,  ran 
to  his  wife,  embraced  her,  and  set  free  all  the  captive 
women  wives  of  the  Hopi  and  other  peoples,  of  whom 
there  were  many.  Eagle  and  Hawk  carried  them  to 
the  ground  on  their  broad  pinions. 

Over  the  plains  and  through  the  mountains  roamed 
the  Giant  Elk.  Many  times  larger  was  he  than  an 
ordinary  elk,  and  an  enemy  to  the  Hopi,  whom  he 
slew  with  his  great  horns,  laughing  at  their  arrows 
and  flint  knives. 

No  one  was  safe  from  this  roaming  monster,  enemy 
to  living  beings,  so  the  Twins  set  out  to  have  a  trial  of 
strength  and  skill  with  him.  As  it  chanced,  the  Giant 
Elk  was  lying  down  in  a  beautiful  valley,  under  the 
aspen  trees  of  the  San  Francisco  Mountains.  Near 
the  house  of  the  Youths  was  this  valley,  and  as  they 
sought  to  stalk  the  Giant  Elk  the  Mole  met  them  and 
said,  "Do  not  encounter  him,  for  he  is  mighty  and 
may  kill  you ;  wait  here  and  I  will  help  you. ' ' 

The  Mole  then  excavated  four  chambers  in  the  earth, 
one  below  another,  and  made  the  Twins  remain  in  the 
upper  one.  He  dug  a  long  tunnel  and  coming  up 
under  the  Elk,  plucked  a  little  soft  hair  from  over  his 
heart,  at  which  the  Elk  turned  his  head  and  looked 
down,  but  the  Mole  said,  ' '  Be  not  angry,  I  only  want 
a  little  soft  hair  to  make  a  bed  for  my  children.  * '  So 
the  Elk  allowed  him  to  continue  the  plucking.  But 
the  Mole  took  away  enough  fur  to  leave  the  skin  quite 


186  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

bare  over  the  heart,  and  expose  the  Elk  to  death.  He 
then  returned  to  the  Twins  and  told  them  what  he 
had  done,  and  they  threw  bolts  of  lightning  and 
wounded  the  Elk,  \vho  sprang  to  his  feet  and  charged 
fiercely.  But  the  Twins  concealed  themselves  in  the 
upper  chamber,  and  when  the  Elk  tried  to  gore  them 
his  horns  were  not  long  enough ;  again  he  charged,  and 
thrust  his  horns  downward,  but  the  Twins  had  safely 
retreated  to  the  second  chamber;  again  he  tried  to 
reach  them,  but  they  were  safe  in  the  third  room. 
They  retreated  to  the  fourth  chamber,  and  when  the 
Elk  made  another  attempt  he  fell  dead. 

The  Chipmunk  who  had  witnessed  the  fight  hurried 
up,  and  after  thanking  the  Twins  said  he  had  come  to 
show  them  how  to  cut  up  the  monster's  body,  which 
with  his  sharp  teeth  he  soon  accomplished.  One  of 
the  Twins  thanked  Chipmunk,  and,  stooping,  he 
dipped  the  tips  of  the  first  two  fingers  of  his  right 
hand  in  the  Elk's  blood  and  drawing  them  along  the 
body  of  the  Chipmunk,  made  on  it  the  marks  which 
he  still  bears. 

This  is  the  story  of  how  the  Twins  killed  Chaveyo, 
who  was  a  giant  of  the  old  times,  clad  in  armor  made 
of  flint  and  seeking  always  for  people  to  devour. 

One  day  the  Twins  went  to  a.  great  pool  near  Mt. 
Taylor,  and  soon  Chaveyo  came  there  likewise;  he 
knelt  down  and  drank  four  times,  empting  the  pool. 
He  then  arose  and  smelt  the  Twins  and  threw  his 
weapon  at  them,  but  one  of  the  Twins  sprang  in 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  187 

the  air  and  as  the  weapon  passed  under  him  he 
caught  it  in  his  hand.  Chaveyo  then  flung  his  light 
ning  at  the  hero,  but  one  of  the  Twins  caught  this 
as  he  had  the  weapon.  The  little  war-god  now  flung 
his  weapon  at  Chaveyo,  but  it  glanced  off  his  flint 
shirt.  Then  the  Youth  threw  the  lightning,  but  it 
only  staggered  him.  After  this  they  threw  more 
lightning  at  Chaveyo,  which  knocked  him  down  and 
killed  him  outright. 

Another  story  tells  how  the  Twins  visited  the  sun. 

The  Twins  lived  with  Spider  Woman,  their  mother, 
on  the  west  side  of  Mt.  Taylor,  and  desired  to  see  the 
home  of  their  father.  Spider  Woman  gave  them  as  a 
charm  a  kind  of  meal,  and  directed  that  when  they  met 
the  guardians  of  the  home  of  the  Sun,  to  chew  a  little 
and  spurt  it  upon  them. 

The  Twins  journeyed  far  to  the  sunrise  where  the 
Sun's  home  is  entered  through  a  canyon  in  the  sky. 
There  Bear,  Mountain  Lion,  Snake,  and  Canyon  Clos 
ing  keep  watch.  The  sky  is  solid  in  this  place,  and  the 
Avails  of  the  entrance  are  constantly  opening  and  clos 
ing,  and  would  crush  any  unauthorized  person  who 
attempted  to  pass  through. 

As  the  Twins  approached  the  ever-fierce  watchers, 
the  trail  lay  along  a  narrow  way;  they  found  it  led 
them  to  a  place  on  one  side  of  which  was  the  face  of  a 
vertical  cliff,  and  on  the  other  a  precipice  which  sunk 
sheer  to  the  Below  (Underworld).  An  old  man  sat 
there,  with  his  back  against  the  wall  and  his  knees 


188  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

drawn  up  close  to  his  chin.  When  they  attempted  to 
pass,  the  old  man  suddenly  thrust  out  his  legs,  trying 
to  knock  the  passers  over  the  cliff.  But  they  leaped 
back  and  saved  themselves,  and  in  reply  to  a  protest 
the  old  man  said  his  legs  were  cramped  and  he  simply 
extended  them  for  relief.  Whereupon  the  hero  re 
membered  the  charm  which  he  had  for  the  southwest 
direction,  and  spurted  it  upon  the  old  man,  forcing 
the  malignant  old  fellow  to  remain  quite  still  with  legs 
drawn  up,  until  the  Twins  had  passed. 

They  then  went  on  to  the  watchers,  guardians  of  the 
entrance  to  the  Sun 's  house,  whom  they  subdued  in  the 
same  manner.  They  also  spurted  the  charm  on  the 
sides  of  the  cliff,  so  that  it  ceased  its  oscillations  and 
remained  open  until  they  had  passed. 

These  dangers  being  past,  they  entered  the  Sun's 
house  and  were  greeted  by  the  Sun's  wife,  who  laid 
them  on  a  bed  of  mats.  Soon  Sun  came  home  from 
his  trip  through  the  underworld,  saying, 

I  smell  strange  children  here;  when  men  go  away 
their  wives  receive  the  embraces  of  strangers.     Where 
are  the  children  whom  you  have  ? 

So  she  brought  the  Twins  to  him,  and  he  put  them 
in  a  flint  oven  and  made  a  hot  fire.  After  a  while, 
when  he  opened  the  door  of  the  oven,  the  Twins 
capered  out  laughing  and  dancing  about  his  knees, 
and  he  knew  that  they  were  his  sons.11 

II  From  * '  The  Destruction  of  the  Tusayan  Monsters, ' '  by 
J.  Walter  Fewkes;  Journ.  Amer.  Folk-Lore,  April-June,  1895, 
pp.  136-137. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  189 

Dr.  J.  Walter  Fewkes  says : 

The  Hopi,  like  many  people,  look  back  to  a  mythic 
time  when  they  believe  their  ancestors  lived  in  a  '  *  par 
adise,"  a  state  or  place  where  food  (corn)  was  plenty 
and  rains  abundant  —  a  world  of  perpetual  summer 
and  flowers.  Their  legends  recount  how,  when  corn 
failed  or  rains  ceased,  culture  heroes  have  sought  this 
imaginary  or  ideal  ancestral  home  to  learn  the  ' ( medi 
cine"  which  blessed  this  happy  land.  Each  sacerdotal 
society  tells  the  story  of  its  own  hero,  who  generally 
brought  from  that  land  a  bride  who  transmitted  to 
her  son  the  knowledge  of  the  altars,  songs,  and  prayers 
which  forced  the  crops  to  grow  and  the  rains  to  fall  in 
her  native  country.  To  become  thoroughly  conversant 
with  the  rites  he  marries  the  maid,  since  otherwise  at 
his  death  they  would  be  lost,  as  knowledge  of  the 
"medicine"  is  transmitted  not  through  his  clan,  but 
to  the  child  of  his  wife.  So  the  Snake  hero  brought 
the  Snake  maid  (Corn-rain  girl)  from  the  underworld, 
the  Flute  hero,  her  sister,  the  Little  War  God  the 
Lakone  mana.  A  Katcina  hero,  in  the  old  times,  on 
a  rabbit  hunt,  came  to  a  region  where  there  was  no 
snow.  There  he  saw  other  Katcina  people  dancing 
amidst  beautiful  gardens.  He  received  melons  from 
them  and  carrying  them  home  told  a  strange  story  of 
a  people  who  inhabited  a  country  where  there  were 
flowering  plants  in  midwinter.  The  hero  and  a  com 
rade  were  sent  back  and  they  stayed  with  these  people, 
returning  home  loaded  with  fruit  during  February. 
They  had  learned  the  songs  of  those  with  whom  they 
had  lived  and  taught  them  in  the  kiva  of  their  own 
people.12 

12  The  Journ.  Amer.  Eth.  and  Arch.,  Vol.  II,  p.  152.  The 
Kachina  hero  in  this  story  would  appear  not  to  have  brought  a 
wife  from  this  people. 


190  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

Most  of  the  migration  traditions  are  full  of  mythic 
elements  which  have  been  incorporated  with  what  has 
often  been  found  to  be  veritable  history.  One  of  these, 
recounting  the  wanderings  of  certain  Southern  clans, 
is  given  by  Dr.  Fewkes. 

At  the  Red  House  in  the  south  internecine  wars  pre 
vailed,  and  the  two  branches  of  the  Patki  people  sep 
arated  from  the  other  Hopi  and  determined  to  return 
to  the  fatherland  in  the  north.  But  these  two  branches 
were  not  on  the  best  of  terms,  and  they  traveled  north 
ward  by  separate  routes,  the  (later  settlers  of)  Mico- 
ninovi  holding  to  the  east  of  the  (later  settlers  of) 
Walpi. 

The  Patki  traveled  north  until  they  came  to  the 
Little  Colorado  River,  and  built  houses  on  its  banks. 
After  living  there  many  years  the  factional  dissen 
sions,  which  seem  to  have  ever  haunted  these  people, 
again  broke  out,  and  the  greater  portion  of  them  with 
drew  still  farther  north  and  built  villages  the  ruins  of 
which  are  still  discernable  not  far  from  the  site  of  the 
villages  their  descendants  inhabit  at  present. 

The  Squash  (Miconinovi)  also  trended  slowly  north 
ward,  occupying,  like  all  their  legendary  movements, 
a  protracted  period  of  indefinite  length  —  years  dur 
ing  which  they  planted  and  built  homes  alternating 
with  years  of  devious  travel.  They  grew  lax  in  the 
observance  of  festivals,  and  Muinwu  inflicted  punish 
ment  upon  them.  He  caused  the  water  to  turn  red, 
and  the  color  of  the  people  also  turned  red;  he  then 
changed  the  water  to  blue,  and  the  people  changed  to 
a  similar  color.  The  Snow  katciwa  appeared  and 
urged  them  to  return  to  their  religion,  but  they  gave 
no  heed  to  him,  so  he  left  them  and  took  away  corn. 


-' 

MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  191 

Muinwu  then  sent  Palulukon  who  killed  rabbits  and 
poured  their  blood  in  the  springs  and  streams,  and  all 
the  water  was  changed  to  blood  and  the  people  were 
stricken  with  a  plague.  They  now  returned  to  their 
religious  observances,  and  danced  and  sang,  but  none 
of  the  deities  would  listen  to  them. 

A  horned  katcina  appeared  to  the  oldest  woman  and 
told  her  that  on  the  following  morning  the  oldest  man 
should  go  out.  and  procure  a  root,  and  that  she  and  a 
young  virgin  of  her  clan  should  eat  it.  After  a  time 
she  (the  old  woman)  would  give  birth  to  a  son  who 
would  marry  the  virgin,  and  their  offspring  would  re 
deem  the  people.  The  old  woman  and  the  virgin 
obeyed  the  ka-tcina,  and  the  former  gave  birth  to  a  son 
who  had  two  horns  upon  his  head.  The  people  would 
not  believe  that  the  child  was  of  divine  origin;  they 
called  it  a  monster  and  killed  it. 

After  this  all  manner  of  distressing  punishments 
were  inflicted  upon  them,  and  wherever  they  halted, 
the  grass  immediately  withered  and  dried.  Their 
wanderings  brought  them,  to  the  foot  of  the  San  Fran 
cisco  Mountains,  where  they  dwelt  for  a  long  time, 
and  at  that  place  the  virgin  gave  birth  to  a  daughter 
who  had  a  little  knob  on  each  side  of  her  forehead. 
They  preserved  this  child,  and  when  she  had  grown  to 
be  a  woman,  the  horned  katcina  appeared  and  an 
nounced  to  her  that  she  would  give  birth  to  horned 
twins,  who  would  bring  rain  and  remove  the  punish 
ment  from  their  people.  This  woman  was  married, 
and  the  twins,  a  boy  and  a  girl,  were  born;  but  she 
concealed  their  divine  origin,  fearing  they  would  be 
destroyed. 

The  Patun  (Squash)  now  moved  to  the  Little  Colo 
rado,  where  they  built  houses  and  met  some  of  the 


192  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

Patki  people  to  whom  they  related  their  distresses.  A 
wise  man  of  the  Patki  came  over  to  see  them,  and  on 
seeing  the  twins  at  once  pronounced  them  to  be  the 
Alosaka.  They  had  no  horns  up  to  this  time,  but  as 
soon  as  this  announcement  was  made,  their  horns  be 
came  visible  and  the  twins  then  spoke  to  the  people 
and  said  it  had  been  ordained  that  they  were  to  be 
unable  to  help  their  people  until  the  people  themselves- 
discovered  who  they  were.  The  Patun  were  so  en- 
raged  to  think  that  the  Alosaka  had  been  with  them, 
unknown  so  many  years,  that  they  killed  them,  ant 
still  greater  sufferings  ensued. 

They  again  repented,  and  carved  two  stone  images 
of  the  Alosaka  which  they  painted  and  decked  with 
feathers  and  sought  to  propitiate  the  mother.  Shi- 
was  full  of  pity  for  her  people  and  prayed  to  the  Sky 
god  to  relieve  them.  A  period  elapsed  in  which  their 
troubles  were  in  great  measure  abated. 

The  Patun  then  sought  to  join  the  Patki  clans,  but; 
the  Patki  would  not  permit  this,  and  compelled  then 
to  keep  east  of  Awatobi. 

Many  ruins  of  phratry  and  family  houses  of  the 
Patun  people  exist  on  the  small  watercourses  north  oi' 
the  Puerco  at  various  distances  eastward  from  the 
present  village  of  Walpi.  The  nearest  are  almost  fif 
teen  miles,  the  farthest  about  fifty  miles. 

Their  wandering  course  was  now  stayed.  When 
they  essayed  to  move  farther  eastward,  a  nomadic 
hunting  race  who  occupied  that  region  besought  them 
not  to  advance  farther.  Their  evil  notoriety  had  pre 
ceded  them,  and  the  nomads  feared  the  maleficent  in 
fluence  of  their  neighborhood.  It  would  seem,  how 
ever,  that  instead  of  hostile  demonstrations  the  nomads 
entered  into  a  treaty  with  them,  offering  to  pay  tribute 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  193 

of  venison,  roots,  and  grass-seeds,  if  they  would  ab 
stain  from  traversing  and  blighting  their  land,  to 
which  the  Patun  agreed. 

But  these  unfortunate  wretches  were  soon  again 
embroiled  in  factional  warfare  which  finally  involved 
all  the  Hopi,  and  the  stone  images  of  the  Alosaka  were 
lost  or  destroyed.  Famine  and  pestilence  again  deci 
mated  them,  until  finally  the  Alosaka  katcina  appeared 
to  them  and  instructed  them  to  carve  two  wooden  im 
ages,  but  threatening  them  that  if  these  images  should 
be  lost  or  destroyed,  all  the  people  would  die. 

Many  other  but  widely  divergent  legends  exist  re 
garding  the  Alosaka,  a  number  of  which  are  associated 
with  the  pueblo  of  Awatobi,  which  was  formerly  one 
of  the  most  populous  Hopi  towns.  At  one  time  this 
village  experienced  drought  and  famine,  and  Alosaka, 
from  his  home  in  the  San  Francisco  Mountains,  ob 
served  the  trouble  of  the  people.  Disguised  as  a  youth 
he  visited  Awatobi  and  became  enamored  with  a 
maiden  of  that  town.  Several  times  he  visited  her, 
but  no  one  knew  whence  he  came  or  whither  he  went, 
for  his  trail  no  one  could  follow.  The  parents  of  the 
girl  at  last  discovered  that  he  came  on  the  rainbow, 
and  recognized  him  as  a  divine  being.  The  children 
of  this  maid  were  horned  beings,  or  Alosakas,  but  their 
identity  was  not  at  first  recognized. 

Like  all  the  cultus  heroes,  Alosaka  is  said,  in  legends, 
to  have  been  miraculously  born  of  a  virgin.  His 
father  was  the  Sun,  his  mother  an  Earth-goddess, 
sometimes  called  a  maiden.  Like  many  gods,  he  trav 
eled  on  the  rainbow;  he  lived  at  Tawaki,  the  house  of 


194  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

his  father,  the  Sun,  or  the  San  Francisco  Mountains.13 
There  is  another  tradition  of  the  clans  that  moved 
from  the  southward  collected  by  the  late  A.  M.  Ste 
phen  from  no  less  a  personage  than  Anowita  (p.  208), 
who  was  chief  of  the  Cloud  people.  The  tradition  is 
as  follows: 

We  did  not  come  direct  to  this  region  [Tusayan],  — 
we  had  no  fixed  intention  as  to  where  we  should  go. 
We  are  the  Patki  nyumu,  and  we  dwelt  at  Palatkwabi 
[Red  land]  where  the  agave  grows  high  and  plentiful; 
perhaps  it  was  in  the  region  the  Americans  call  Gila 
valley,  but  of  that  I  am  not  certain.  It  was  far  south 
of  here,  and  a  large  river  flowed  past  our  village, 
which  was  large,  and  the  houses  were  high,  and  a 
strange  thing  happened  there. 

Our  people  were  not  living  peaceably  at  that  time, 
we  were  quarreling  among  ourselves,  over  huts  and 
other  things,  I  have  heard,  but  who  can  tell  what 
caused  their  quarrels  ?  There  was  a  famous  hunter  of 
our  people,  and  he  cut  off  the  tips  from  the  antlers  of 
the  deer  which  he  killed  and  [wore  them  for  a  neck 
lace]  he  always  carried  them.  He  lay  down  in  a  hol 
low  in  the  court  of  the  village,  as  if  he  had  died,  but 
our  people  doubted  this;  they  thought  he  was  only 
shamming  death,  yet  they  covered  him  up  with  earth. 
Next  day  his  extended  hand  protruded,  the  four  fin 
gers  erect,  and  the  first  day  after  that  one  finger  dis 
appeared  [was  doubled  up?]  ;  each  day  a  finger  disap 
peared,  until  on  the  fourth  day  his  hand  was  no  longer 

is  The  Alosaka  Cult  of  the  Hopi  Indians,  by  J.  Walter 
Fewkes;  American  Anthropologist  (N.  S.),  Vol.  I,  July,  1899, 
pp.  535-539. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  195 

visible  and  the  old  people  thought  that  he  dug  down 
to  the  underworld  with  the  horn  tips. 

On  the  fifth  day  water  spouted  up  from  the  hole 
where  his  hand  had  been  and  it  spread  over  every 
where.  On  the  sixth  day,  Palulvkona  [the  Serpent 
Deity]  protruded  from  this  hole  and  looked  around  in 
every  direction.  All  the  lower  ground  was  covered 
and  many  were  drowned,  but  most  of  our  people  had 
fled  to  some  knolls  not  far  from  the  village  and  which 
were  not  yet  submerged. 

When  the  old  men  saw  Palulukona-  they  asked  him 
what  he  wanted,  because  they  knew  he  had  caused  this 
flood;  and  Palulukona  said,  "I  want  you  to  give  me  a 
youth  and  a  maiden. ' '  The  elders  consulted  and  then 
selected  the  handsomest  youth  and  fairest  maid  and 
arrayed  them  in  their  finest  apparel,  the  youth  with  a 
white  kilt  and  paroquet  plume,  and  the  maid  with  a 
fine  blue  tunic  and  white  mantle.  These  children 
wept  and  besought  their  parents  not  to  send  them  to 
Palulukona,  but  an  old  chief  said,  "You  must  go;  do 
not  be  afraid:  I  will  guide  you."  And  he  led  them 
toward  the  village  court  and  stood  at  the  edge  of  the 
water,  but  sent  the  children  wading  in  toward  Palu 
lukona,  and  when  they  had  reached  the  center  of  the 
court  where  Palulukona  was  the  deity,  the  children 
disappeared.  The  water  then  rushed  down  after  them, 
through  a  great  cavity,  and  the  earth  quaked  and 
many  houses  tumbled  down,  and  from  this  cavity  a 
great  mound  of  dark  rock  protruded.  This  rock 
mound  was  glossy  and  of  all  colors ;  it  was  beautiful, 
and,  as  I  have  been  told,  it  still  remains  there. 

The  White  Mountain  Apache  have  told  me  that  they 
know  a  place  in  the  south  where  the  old  houses  sur- 


196  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

round  a  great  rock,  and  the  land  in  the  vicinity  is  wet 
and  boggy. 

We  traveled  northward  from  Palatkwabi  and  con 
tinued  to  travel  just  as  long  as  any  strength  was  Ief1 
in  the  people,  —  as  long  as  they  had  breath.  During 
these  journeys  we  would  halt  only  for  one  day  at  a 
time.  Then  our  chief  planted  corn  in  the  morning 
and  the  dragonfly  came  and  hovered  over  the  stalks 
and  by  noon  the  corn  was  ripe ;  before  sunset  it  was 
quite  dry  and  the  stalks  fell  over,  and  in  whichever 
way  they  pointed,  in  that  direction  we  traveled. 

When  anyone  became  ill,  or  when  children  fretted 
and  cried,  or  the  young  people  became  homesick  the 
Coiyal  Katcina  (a  youth  and  a  maiden)  came  and 
danced  before  them ;  then  the  sick  got  well,  children 
laughed,  and  sad  ones  became  cheerful.  We  would 
continue  to  travel  until  everyone  was  thoroughly  worn 
out,  then  we  would  halt  and  build  houses  and  plant, 
remaining  perhaps  many  years.  One  of  these  places 
where  we  lived  is  not  far  from  San  Carlos,  in  a  valley, 
and  another  is  on  a  mesa  near  a  spring  called  Coyote 
Water  by  the  Apache.  .  . 

When  we  came  to  the  valley  of  the  Little  Colorado, 
south  of  where  Winslow  now  is,  we  built  houses  and 
lived  there ;  then  we  crossed  to  the  northern  side  of  the 
valley  and  built  houses  at  Homolobi.  This  was  a  good 
place  for  a  time,  but  a  plague  of  flies  came  and  bit  the 
suckling  children,  causing  many  of  them  to  die,  so  we 
left  there  and  traveled  to  Cipa  (near  Kuma  spring). 
Finally  we  found  the  Hopi,  some  going  to  each  of  the 
villages  except  Awatobi ;  none  went  there.14 

i*  Cosmos  Mindeleff,  13th  Annual  Report  of  the  Bureau  of 
American  Ethnology,  pp.  188-189. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  197 

The  figure  of  a  hand  with  extended  fingers  is  very 
common,  in  the  vicinity  of  ruins,  as  a  rock  etching, 
and  also  is  frequently  seen  daubed  on  the  rocks  with 
colored  pigments  or  white  clay.  These  are  vestiges  of 
a  test  formerly  practiced  by  the  young  men  who  as 
pired  for  admission  to  the  fraternity  of  the  Calako. 
The  Calako  is  a  trinity  of  two  women  and  a  man  from 
whom  the  Hopi  obtained  the  first  corn,  and  of  whom 
the  following  legend  is  told : 

There  was  neither  springs  nor  streams,  although 
water  was  so  near  the  surface  that  it  could  be  found 
by  pulling  up  a  tuft  of  grass.  The  people  had  but 
little  food,  however,  and  they  besought  Masauwuh  to 
help  them,  but  he  could  not. 

There  came  a  little  old  man,  a  dwarf,  who  said  that 
he  had  two  sisters  who  were  the  wives  of  Calako,  and 
it  might  be  well  to  petition  them.  So  they  prepared 
an  altar,  every  man  making  a  paho,  and  these  were 
set  in  the  ground  so  as  to  encircle  a  sand  hillock,  for 
this  occurred  before  houses  were  known. 

Masauwuh 's  brother  came  and  told  them  that  when 
Calako  came  to  the  earth's  surface  wherever  he  placed 
his  foot  a  deep  chasm  was  made,  then  they  brought 
to  the  altar  a  huge  rock,  on  which  Calako  might  stand, 
and  they  set  it  between  the  two  pahos  placed  for  his 
wives.  Then  the  people  got  their  rattles  and  stood 
around  the  altar,  each  man  in  front  of  his  own  paho ; 
but  they  stood  in  silence,  for  they  knew  no  song  with 
which  to  invoke  this  strange  god.  They  stood  there 
for  a  long  while,  for  they  were  afraid  to  begin  the 
ceremonies,  until  a  young  lad,  selecting  the  largest 
rattle,  began  to  shake  it  and  sing.  Presently  a  sound 


198  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

like  rushing  water  was  heard,  but  no  water  was  seen ; 
a  sound  also  like  great  winds,  but  the  air  was  perfectly 
still,  and  it  was  seen  that  the  rock  was  pierced  with  a 
great  hole  through  the  center.  The  people  were  fright 
ened  and  ran  away,  all  save  the  young  lad  who  had 
sung  the  invocation. 

The  lad  soon  afterward  rejoined  them,  and  they 
saw  that  his  back  was  cut  and  bleeding,  and  covered 
with  splinters  of  yucca  and  willow.  The  flagellation, 
he  told  them,  had  been  administered  by  Calako,  who 
told  him  that  he  must  endure  this  laceration  before  he 
could  look  upon  the  beings  he  had  invoked ;  that  only 
to  those  who  passed  through  his  ordeals  could  Calako 
become  visible ;  and  as  the  lad  had  braved  the  test  so 
well,  he  should  henceforth  be  chief  of  the  Calako 
altar.  The  lad  could  not  describe  Calako,  but  said 
that  his  two  wives  were  exceedingly  beautiful  and  ar 
rayed  with  all  manner  of  fine  garments.  They  wore 
great  headdresses  of  clouds  and  every  kind  of  corn 
which  they  were  to  give  to  the  Hopi  to  plant  for  food. 
These  were  white,  red,  yellow,  blue,  black,  blue  and 
white  speckled,  and  red  and  yellow  speckled  corn,  and 
a  seded  grass  (hwapi). 

The  lad  returned  to  the  altar  and  shook  his  rattle 
over  the  hole  in  the  rock  and  from  its  interior  Calako 
conversed  with  him  and  gave  him  instructions.  In  ac 
cordance  with  these  he  gathered  all  the  Hopi  youths 
and  brought  them  to  the  rock,  that  Calako  might  se 
lect  certain  of  them  to  be  his  priests.  The  first  test 
was  that  of  putting  their  hands  in  the  mud  and  im 
pressing  them  upon  the  rock.  Only  those  were  chosen 
as  novices  the  imprints  of  whose  hands  had  dried  on 
the  instant.  The  selected  youths  then  moved  within 
the  altar  and  underwent  the  test  of  flagellation.  Cala 
ko  lashed  them  with  yucca  and  willow.  Those  who  made 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  199 

no  outcry  were  told  to  remain  in  the  altar,  to  abstain 
from  salt  and  flesh  for  ten  days,  when  Calako  would 
return  and  instruct  them  concerning  the  rites  to  be 
performed  when  they  sought  his  aid. 

Calako  and  his  two  wives  appeared  at  the  appointed 
time,  and  after  many  ceremonials  gave  to  each  of  the 
initiated  five  grains  of  each  of  the  different  kinds  of 
corn.  The  Hopi  women  had  been  instructed  to  place 
baskets  woven  of  grass  at  the  foot  of  the  rock,  and  in 
these  Calako 's  wives  placed  the  seeds  of  squashes, 
melons,  beans,  and  all  the  other  vegetables  which  the 
Hopi  have  since  possessed.  Calako  and  his  wives, 
after  announcing  that  they  would  again  return,  took 
off  their  masks  and  garments,  and  laying  them  on  the 
rock  disappeared  within  it. 

Some  time  after  this,  when  the  initiated  were  as 
sembled  in  the  altar,  the  Great  Plumed  Snake  ap 
peared  to  them  and  said  that  Calako  could  not  return 
unless  one  of  them  was  brave  enough  to  take  the  mask 
and  garments  down  into  the  hole  and  give  it  to  him. 
They  were  all  afraid,  but  the  oldest  man  of  the  Hopi 
took  them  down  and  was  deputed  to  return  and  repre 
sent  Calako. 

Shortly  afterward  Masauwuh  stole  the  parapher 
nalia  and  with  his  two  brothers  masqueraded  as  Calako 
and  his  wives.  This  led  the  Hopi  into  great  trouble, 
and  they  incurred  the  wrath  of  Muiyinwuh,  who  with 
ered  all  their  grain  and  corn.  One  of  the  Hopi  finally 
discovered  that  the  supposed  Calako  carried  a  cedar 
bough  in  his  hand,  when  it  should  have  been  willow ; 
then  they  knew  it  was  Masauwuh  who  had  been  mis 
leading  them.  The  boy  hero  one  day  found  Masau 
wuh  asleep,  and  so  regained  possession  of  the  mask. 
Muiyinwuh  then  withdrew  his  punishments  and  sent 
Palulukon  (The  Plumed  Snake)  to  tell  the  Hopi  that 


200  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

Calako  would  never  return  to  them,  but  that  the  boy 
hero  should  wear  his  mask  and  represent  him,  and  his 
festival  should  be  celebrated  when  they  had  a  proper 
number  of  novices  to  be  initiated. 

The  celebration  occurs  in  the  modern  Hopi  pueblos 
in  the  Powamu  ceremony,  where  the  representative  of 
Calako  flogs  the  children.  Calako  ?s  picture  is  formed 
on  the  Powamu  altars  of  several  of  the  villages  of  the 
Hopi.15 


is  Dr.  J.  Walter  Fewkes,  Expedition  to  Arizona  iu  1895,  17th 
Annual  Report  of  the  Bureau  of  American  Ethnology,  Part  2, 
Washington,  1898.  C  has  the  sound  of  sh. 


IX 
TRADITIONS  AND  HISTORY 

When  men  grow  old,  they  become,  as  if  realizing 
their  passing,  years  willing  or  even  anxious  to  transfer 
to  younger  minds  what  they  have  learned.  To  the  old 
men  the  historian  of  Hopi  turns  for  information ;  the 
young  men  by  the  laws  of  growth  live  in  the  present. 
So  when  an  old  man  dies  there  is  a  feeling  of  regret ; 
especially  when  one  as  versed  in  the  lore  of  his  people 
as  Masimptua  departs,  for  who  knows  whether  the  pic 
tures  of  his  brain  are  impressed  upon  the  minds  of  the 
new  generation  or  whether  they  are  lost  forever  ? 

Masimptua  was  one  of  the  chief  men  of  the  East 
Mesa.  His  house  was  as  large  and  neatly-kept  as  any 
in  Sichomovi,  where  there  is  more  room  to  build 
large  dwellings  than  in  circumscribed  Walpi  with  its 
narrow  cells.  His  children  were  grown  up  and  mar 
ried,  and  a  number  of  little  ones  called  him  grand 
father.  Still  his  resting  place  is  among  the  rocks  on 
the  mesa  slope  below  the  town,  unmarked,  as  are  those 
of  his  ancestors  who  sleep  outside  of  the  walls  of  the 
ruined  cities  of  the  Southwest.  It  is  pleasant  to  re- 


202  MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND 

member  "Masi"  in  his  cheerful  days,  before  warning 
shadow  fell  across  his  sunny  spirit.  In  those  days  he 
was  a  genuine  Hopi,  a  little  boisterous,  perhaps,  but 
truly  openhearted.  No  man  in  all  the  tribe  could  re 
late  more  vividly  the  legendary  history  of  the  old 
times,  hence  Masi  stands  to  all  who  knew  him  as  the 
exponent  of  Hopi  traditions.  Often  summer  even 
ings,  returning  from  his  fields  he  would  tarry  at  the 
camp  of  the  white  people  at  the  Sun  Spring  for  a 
friendly  smoke  and  chat.  Here  under  the  genial  in 
fluences,  led  on  by  skillful  questioning,  he  would  un 
fold  many  a  tale  as  interesting  as  those  of  an  Eastern 
storyteller,  till  the  sunset  faded  and  the  bright  stars 
twinkled  in  the  clear  night  sky. 

One  of  his  stories  gives  an  idea  of  the  happenings 
in  Hopiland  some  centuries  ago.  At  that  time  the 
people  suffered  from  the  attacks  of  the  bands  of 
Apache,  who  came  out  of  their  hunting  grounds  to  the 
south  in  search  of  trouble.  The  trails  to  the  mesa 
were  closed  and  the  Hopi  went  up  and  down  the  pre 
cipitous  rock  sides  by  means  of  a  ladder  which  could 
be  drawn  up  in  time  of  danger.  Masi  could  not  avoid 
painting  the  prowess  of  the  Hopi  in  strong  colors 
while  he  described  the  last  attack  the  Apache  made 
when  his  grandfather  was  a  boy.  He  gesticulated  ex 
citedly  as  though  he  were  giving  the  death-blow  to 
each  of  the  fallen  enemy  that  had  fled  before  the 
valiant  Hopi,  and  his  hearer  caught  the  contagion  of 
his  enthusiasm  and  slew  with  him  the  hated  foe. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  203 

Another  tradition  he  related  was  about  the  ancient 
people.  Looking  toward  the  Southwest  he  said,  "Do 
you  see  two  small  peaks  close  together  on  the  horizon  ? 
There  is  one  of  the  houses  of  the  sun,  where  he  rests 
when  he  is  in  the  west.  Our  people  once  lived  in  a 
rock  town  on  the  peak  to  the  left.  The  town  was 
called  *  Chub  i  o  chctia  ki, '  '  The  house  of  the  place  of 
the  Antelopes, '  where  also  there  are  pine  trees,  shrubs 
and  flowers,  grass  and  much  water.  Perhaps  it  was 
here,  who  knows  ? ' '  said  he,  * '  that  the  people  were  al 
most  overwhelmed  by  a  great  flood  which  kept  rising 
over  the  plains  and  over  the  hills  till  it  reached  nearly 
the  tops  of  the  mountains  where  the  ancestors  were 
waiting  in  fear.  When  the  boy  and  girl  were  thrown 
into  the  flood,  then  came  safety,  for  the  wrath  of  the 
earth-god  was  appeased  and  the  waters  went  down. 
But  the  youth  and  maiden  heroes  were  turned  into 
two  great  stone  pillars,  which  bear  their  names  to  this 
day."  (See  Myths.) 

This  striking  legend  of  some  almost  forgotten  deluge 
related  by  Masi  is  not  found  alone  among  the  Hopi, 
but  is  widespread  among  the  Pueblos  of  the  Southwest. 
Surely,  there  is  no  danger  now  of  a  flood  in  this  dry 
region,  but  in  former  times  as  the  vast  levels  and  the 
beds  of  ancient  lakes  show,  there  must  have  been 
plenty  of  water.  Masi's  traditions  do  not  go  into 
geological  periods,  however. 

Another  time,  while  in  reminiscent  mood,  Masi 
divulged  that  "very,  very  when"  ago  the  Peaceful 


204  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

People  lived  on  the  Little  Colorado  River  near  Wins- 
low.  The  name  of  the  region  where  several  towns 
were  scattered  over  an  extent  of  fifteen  miles  or  so 
was  Homolobi,  "the  place  of  two  views."  Here  the 
people  lived  centuries  before  they  came  to  the  pre 
cipitous  mesas  of  Hopiland.  Later,  when  explorers 
tested  the  accuracy  of  Masi  's  tradition,  they  found  in 
the  low  mounds  that  mark  the  ruined  towns  of  Hoino- 
lobi,  many  wonderful  relics  of  the  people  who  lived 
there  before  America  was  even  a  name.  So  Masi  wras 
proved  a  reliable  traditionist,  and  an  '  *  honisht  man, ' ' 
as  Toby,  the  Tewa,  says. 

It  is  truly  remarkable  how  the  traditions  and 
legendary  lore  have  been  carried  down  from  ancient 
times  among  the  Hopi.  The  moderns,  who  are  accus 
tomed  to  place  reliance  in  recorded  history,  might  be 
inclined  to  doubt  the  accuracy  of  oral  tradition,  if 
there  were  not  much  reason  to  believe  otherwise.  For 
instance,  the  Hopi  have  a  number  of  traditions  of  the 
Spanish  friars  who  lived  in  their  country  after  the  dis 
covery  by  Coronado  about  three  hundred  and  seventy- 
five  years  ago.  An  Oraibi  Indian  relates  one  of  these 
minor  traditions  which  might  be  expected  to  have  been 
lost  in  the  lapse  of  time  but  has  been  passed  down  with 
complete  preservation  of  all  the  details. 

It  is  thus:  the  friars  Avho  lived  at  Oraibi  did  not 
relish  the  water  from  the  springs  near  the  pueblo. 
Now  the  water  at  Moenkapi,  the  summer  village  of 
Oraibi,  is  excellent.  The  priests  used  to  compel  the 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  205 

Indians  to  bring  water  from  that  place.  It  chanced 
that  the  Indian  whose  duty  it  was  to  carry  water  from 
Moenkapi,  not  liking  to  bring  water  many  miles  por 
el  amor  de  Dios,  one  day  filled  his  canteen  with  the 
water  of  Oraibi  and  brought  it  to  the  friars.  On 
tasting  the  water,  they  accused  the  Indian  of  deceit 
and  compelled  him  to  go  to  Moenkapi  for  more. 

An  old  chief  of  Walpi  gave  a  long  and  circumstan 
tial  account  of  the  rule  of  the  friars,  against  whom 
even  at  this  late  day  he  was  very  bitter.  He  said  with 
emphasis,  "Castil  shimuno  pash  kalolomi,"  "The 
Spanish  are  very  bad,"  and  related  how  they  strove 
to  enslave  the  people,  making  them  carry  large  cotton- 
wood  beams  from  the  Little  Colorado  for  the  churches. 
To  our  knowledge,  a  few  of  these  beams  from  the  old 
churches,  curiously  carved,  are  now  doing  service  in 
the  ceilings  of  pagan  kivas  or  underground  rooms 
where  secret  ceremonies  are  carried  on.  The  ''long 
gowns, ' '  as  the  Indians  also  call  them,  might  have  held 
this  tractable,  timid  people  long  in  subjection  in  the 
non-essential  things,  such  as  labor,  but  as  the  old 
chief  relates,  they  interfered  with  their  time-honored 
ceremonies  of  ancestor  and  nature  worship.  "They 
said  the  dances  were  very  bad  and  we  must  stop 
them,"  explained  the  old  chief.  There  was  still  an 
other  grievance  that  the  Hopi  allege  against  the 
friars,  and  that  was  their  treatment  of  the  women. 
Interference  with  religion  and  custom  have  been  at 
the  bottom  of  most  of  the  troubles  of  humanity.  At 


206  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

last  the  Peaceful  People  turned  and  the  Castil  shinu- 
mo  were  thrown  over  the  rocky  mesa,  and  from  that 
time  to  this  their  names  have  been  execrated  by  the 
Hopi. 

Traditions  of  the  very  first  appearance  of  Spaniards 
before  the  Pueblos  have  come  down  for  ten  genera 
tions  as  fresh  as  though  the  events  had  happened  last 
year,  and  they  can  be  compared  with  the  accounts  of 
the  conquerors  themselves.  This  lapse  of  time  has 
not  given  mythical  tinge  to  these  events.  It  may  be 
believed,  then,  that  the  ancient  history  which  has  be 
come  mythical  dates  very  far  back  and  to  regions  far 
removed  from  the  present  mesas  of  Hopiland.  Every 
ruin  in  the  province,  those  south  on  the  Little  Colo 
rado  and  farther  beyond  the  dim  Mogollon  Moun 
tains  on  the  horizon  and  those  to  other  compass  points 
for  surprising  distances  are  known  in  Hopi  traditions, 
and  wise  is  the  student  of  ancient  things  in  Tusayan 
who  first  fortifies  himself  by  delving  in  this  store  of 
unwritten  history. 

The  duties  of  the  warrior  chiefs  are  not  burdensome, 
since  the  Hopi  have  fostered  the  arts  of  peace  till  it 
has  become  a  national  characteristic.  It  is  fortunate 
for  the  Hopi  that  they  belong  to  those  who  run  away, 
not  even  "to  fight  another  day,''  desirous  to  live  in 
contentment  and  happy  to  exist  on  the  earth,  after  the 
fierce  enemies  have  jostled  many  tribes  out  of  exist 
ence.  Still,  the  Hopi  keep  up  in  a.  feeble,  traditional 
way  a  warrior  society,  which  corresponds  to  the  pow- 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  207 

erful  Priesthood  of  the  Bow  who  are  said  to  rule  Zuni. 
So  in  the  villages  of  Tusayan  the  warriors  are  merely 
ornamental  and  dance  bravely  in  some  ceremonies, 
though  at  some  critical  period  of  invasion  the  necessity 
of  drawing  the  "dead  line"  might  fall  upon  the  war 
rior  society,  as  it  has  beforetimes. 

When  one  day  in  the  year  1540  the  Spaniards  halted 
under  the  Hopi  towns  there  was  consternation  among 
the  people  at  the  sight  of  the  armored  conquerors  and 
all  held  back  in  their  houses  for  fear  of  them.  Not  so 
the  warrior  priests,  who,  striding  down  the  trail, 
sprinkled  a  line  of  meal  between  the  town  and  the 
Spaniards.  According  to  immemorial  custom  this 
line  of  meal  means  that  no  one  shall  pass  under  penalty 
of  death.  One  of  the  Spanish  soldiers  crossed  the  line 
and  was  killed  by  the  warriors.  Then  the  Spanish 
friar  who  came  with  the  expedition  in  quest  of  new 
souls  to  save,  cried  out  in  effect,  ' '  What  are  we  here 
f or  ? ' ' ;  a  volley  followed ;  the  Hopi  heard  the  report  of 
a  gun  for  the  first  time,  and  a  number  of  them  bit  the 
dust.  The  remainder  fled  to  the  village,  which  was 
thoroughly  frightened  at  the  terrible  visitation  of 
bearded  foes.  On  the  next  day  a  deputation  came 
down  to  the  Spanish  camp  bringing  presents  and 
offering  humble  submission  to  the  white  men. 

More  than  three  centuries  later,  a  body  of  United 
States  troops  who  were  sent  to  coerce  the  Oraibi  be 
cause  they  would  not  send  their  children  to  school,  met 
with  a  similar  experience,  but  by  good  management  no 


208  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

blood  was  shed  and  the  Indian  leaders  were  exiled  to 
California  for  a  year  or  so.  It  is  a  curious  circum 
stance  that  in  our  county  where  the  past  is  forgotten 
so  soon  there  should  exist  a  people  who  remember  and 
take  warning  from  the  events  of  almost  four  centuries 
ago. 

On  the  rocks  below  Walpi  there  is  a  curiously 
carved  record  which  has  a  good  bit  of  war  history 
connected  with  it.  Hear  Anowita,  the  Warrior  Chief, 
tell  the  story : 

Very  when  ago  [long  time]  the  Ute  and  Apache 
were  always  wishing  to  kill  the  Good  People.  They 
were  very  bad.  At  that  time  there  was  no  trail  up 
the  great  rocks  to  Hopi-M  ' l  Walpi. "  The  people 
climbed  up  and  clown  a  long  ladder  which  could  be 
drawn  up  at  night.  I  can  show  you  where  the  ladder 
stood.  It  was  bad  for  the  people  to  be  frightened  all 
the  time,  so  they  sent  messengers  to  ask  the  Tewa 
from  the  Great  River  to  come  and  dwell  at  Walpi  to 
fight  their  enemies.  The  Tewa  came,  many  families 
of  them ;  there  was  a  battle  at  a  spring  north  of  Walpi 
and  the  Tewa  killed  as  many  Utes  as  there  are  marks 
cut  in  the  rock  below  the  Gap.  The  Ute  did  not  come 
back  again.  The  Tewa  were  given  lands  and  springs  to 
the  eastward  and  their  village  was  set  at  the  head  of  the 
trail  near  the  Gap  so  that  they  could  guard  the  mesa. 

This  is  the  origin  of  the  Tewa  town  of  Hano  on 
the  East  Mesa,  through  which  everyone  must  go  who 
seeks  an  easy  entrance  into  Walpi.  One  cannot  avoid 
thinking  that  the  recorder  of  the  battle  of  the  spring 
was  not  sparing  with  his  list  of  dead  Ute,  which  he 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  209 

scored  with  a  series  of  lines  cut  in  a  smooth  sandstone 
face. 

The  explorations  in  the  buried  towns  of  a  section 
of  the  ancient  Hopi  which  extend  in  a  line  from  the 
Gila  River  to  their  present  mesa  homes  show  that  for 
all  these  centuries  they  have  been  un warlike  people. 
There  is  the  greatest  scarcity  of  weapons,  such  as  ar 
rowheads  and  spearheads,  and  there  are  few  war  axes 
to  be  found  among  the  numerous  relics  of  peaceful  pur 
suits,  though  wooden  clubs  were  no  doubt  used.  This 
accords  with  the  situation  of  the  towns  on  high,  easily 
defended  positions  and  the  building  of  houses  in  clus 
ters,  the  outer  walls  forming  a  fortification  which  de 
fied  assailants. 

Only  once  during  their  history  did  the  Hopi  light 
the  fires  of  war,  and  this  was  a  religious  conflict  car 
ried  on  in  true  Indian  fashion.  About  the  beginning 
of  the  seventeenth  century  the  Spanish  priests  had 
gained  a  foothold  in  the  town  of  Awatobi,  situated  on 
a  high  mesa  south  of  Walpi.  The  Awatobi  Hopi  had 
prospered,  and  their  valley,  presenting  to  the  south  a 
marvelous  panorama  of  the  lava  buttes,  produced 
abundant  food  besides  cotton  for  woven  fabrics.  Awa 
tobi  was  a  large  town  of  Hopiland ;  the  walls  of 
the  mission  church  still  stand  high  enough  to  be  a 
landmark  miles  away.  The  houses  were  four  stories 
high  and  they  were  sufficient  to  accommodate  1,000 
souls. 

Perhaps  this  prosperity  caused  envy;  perhaps  the 


210  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

submission  to  the  priests  roused  enmity;  the  other 
Hopi  said  that  the  Awatobi  were  witches,  and  one 
night  they  gathered  to  exterminate  them.  The  Awa 
tobi  men  were  conducting  a  ceremony  in  the  under 
ground  rooms  when  blazing  fagots  were  thrown  down, 
followed  by  pepper  pods,  and  they  perished  miserably. 
Those  who  were  captured  in  the  houses  were  led  out 
to  a  spring  and  massacred.  The  women  and  children, 
many  of  them,  were  taken  to  other  Hopi  towns  and 
their  lives  spared. 

This  massacre  took  place  about  the  year  1700  and 
forms  the  darkest  page  in  the  history  of  Tusayan  ;  it 
shows  also  that  the  Peaceful  People  can  be  overzealous 
at  times.  In  times  much  before  this,  according  to  tra 
dition,  Sikyatki,  the  home  of  the  Firewood  people, 
who  were  the  last  potters  of  Tusayan,  was  destroyed, 
as  were,  no  doubt,  other  pueblos  of  tribes  of  different 
origin  from  the  Hopi. 

The  story  of  Saalako,  who  descends  from  a  survivor 
of  the  Awatobi  massacre  runs  as 


The  chiefs  Wiki  and  Simo,  and  others,  have  told 
you  their  stories,  and  surely  their  ancestors  were  liv 
ing  here  at  Walpi  when  Awatobi  was  occupied.  It 
was  a  large  village,  and  many  people  lived  there,  and 
the  village  chief  was  called  Tapolo,  but  he  was  not  at 
peace  with  his  people,  and  there  was  quarreling  and 
trouble.  Owing  to  this  conflict  only  a  little  rain  fell, 
but  the  land  was  fertile  and  fair  harvests  were  still 
gathered.  The  Awatobi  men  were  bad  [powako,  sor 
cerers]  .  Sometimes  they  went  in  small  bands  among 


I 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  211 

the  fields  of  the  other  villagers  and  cudgeled  any  sol 
itary  workers  they  found,  If  they  overtook  any 
woman  they  ravished  her,  and  they  waylaid  hunting 
parties,  taking  the  game  and  sometimes  killing  the 
hunters.  There  was  considerable  trouble  at  Awatobi, 
and  Tapolo  sent  to  the  Oraibi  chief  asking  him  to 
bring  his  people  and  kill  the  evil  Awatobeans.  The 
Oraibis  came  and  fought  with  them,  and  many  were 
killed  on  both  sides,  but  the  Oraibis  were  not  strong 
enough  to  enter  the  village  and  were  compelled  to 
withdraw.  On  his  way  back,  the  Oraibi  chief  stopped 
at  Walpi  and  talked  with  the  chiefs  there.  Said  he, 
"I  can  not  tell  why  Tapolo  wants  the  Oraibis  to  kill 
his  folks,  but  we  have  tried  and  have  not  succeeded 
very  well.  Even  if  we  did  succeed,  what  benefit 
would  come  to  us  who  live  too  far  away  to  occupy  the 
land  ?  You  Walpi  people  live  close  to  them  and  have 
suffered  most  at  their  hands;  it  is  for  you  to  try." 
While  they  were  talking  Tapolo  had  also  come,  and  it 
was  then  decided  that  other  chiefs  of  all  the  villages 
should  convene  at  Walpi  to  consult.  Couriers  were 
sent  out,  and  when  all  the  chiefs  had  arrived  Tapolo 
declared  that  his  people  had  become  sorcerers  [Chris 
tians],  and  hence  should  all  be  destroyed. 

It  was  then  arranged  that  in  four  days  large  bands 
from  all  the  other  villages  should  prepare  themselves, 
and  assemble  at  a  spring  not  far  away  from  Awatobi. 
A  long  while  before  this,  when  the  Spaniards  lived 
there,  they  had  built  a  wall  on  the  side  of  the  village 
that  needed  protection,  and  in  this  wall  was  a  great, 
strong  door.  Tapolo  proposed  that  the  assailants 
should  come  before  dawn,  and  he  would  be  at  this 
door  ready  to  admit  them,  and  under  this  compact  he 
returned  to  his  village.  During  the  fourth  night  after 


212  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

this,  as  agreed  upon,  the  various  bands  assembled  at 
the  deep  gulch  spring,  and  every  man  carried,  besides 
his  weapons,  a  cedar-bark  torch  and  a  bundle  of 
greasewood.  Just  before  dawn  they  moved  silently 
up  to  the  mesa  summit,  and,  going  directly  to  the  east 
side  of  the  village  they  entered  the  gate,  which  opened 
as  they  approached.  In  one  of  the  courts  was  a  large 
kiva,  and  in  it  were  a  number  of  men  engaged  in  sor 
cerer's  rites.  The  assailants  at  once  made  for  the 
kiva,  and  plucking  up  the  ladder,  they  stood  around 
the  hatchway,  shooting  arrows  down  among  the  en 
trapped  occupants.  In  the  numerous  cooking  pits  fire 
had  been  maintained  through  the  night  for  the  prep 
aration  of  food  for  a  feast  on  the  appointed  morning, 
and  from  these  they  lighted  their  torches.  Great 
numbers  of  these  and  the  bundles  of  greasewood  be 
ing  set  on  fire  were  then  cast  down  the  hatchway,  and 
firewood  from  stacks  upon  the  house  terraces  was 
also  thrown  into  the  kiva.  The  red  peppers  for  which 
Awatobi  was  famous  were  hanging  in  thick  clusters 
along  the  fronts  of  the  houses,  and  these  they  crushed 
in  their  hands  and  flung  upon  the  blazing  fire  in  the 
kiva  to  torment  their  blazing  occupants.  After  this, 
all  who  were  capable  of  moving  were  compelled  to 
travel  or  drag  themselves  until  they  came  to  the  sand 
hills  of  Miconinovi,  and  there  the  final  disposition  of 
the  prisoners  was  made. 

My  maternal  ancestor  had  recognized  a  woman  chief 
(Mmnzrau  monwi),  and  saved  her  at  the  place  of 
massacre  called  Maski,  and  now  he  asked  her  whether 
she  would  be  willing  to  initiate  the  women  of  Wai  pi  in 
the  rites  of  the  Mamzrau.  She  complied,  and  thus 
the  observance  of  the  ceremony  called  Mamzrauti 
came  to  the  other  villages.  This  Mamzrau  movw-i  had 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  213 

no  children  and  hence  my  maternal  ancestor's  sister 
became  chief,  and  her  badge  of  office,  or  tiponi,  came 
to  me.  Some  of  the  other  Awatobi  women  knew  how 
to  bring  rain,  and  such  of  them  as  were  willing  to 
teach  their  songs  were  spared  and  went  to  different 
villages.  The  Oraibi  chief  saved  a  man  who  knew 
how  to  cause  the  peach  to  grow,  and  that  is  why 
Oraibi  has  such  an  abundance  of  peaches  now.  The 
Miconinovi  chief  saved  a  prisoner  who  knew  how  to 
make  the  sweet,  small-ear  corn  grow,  and  this  is  why 
it  is  more  abundant  there  than  elsewhere.  All  the 
women  who  knew  prayers  and  were  willing  to  teach 
them  were  spared,  and  no  children  were  designedly 
killed,  but  were  divided  among  the  villages,  most  of 
them  going  to  Miconinovi.  The  remainder  of  the 
prisoners,  men  and  women,  were  again  tortured  and 
dismembered  and  left  to  die  on  the  sand  hills,  and 
there  their  bones  are,  and  the  place  is  called  Mastcomo, 
or  Death  Mound.  This  is  the  story  of  Awatobi  told 
by  my  people.16 

It  is  difficult  to  conceive  of  the  conservatism  of 
some  of  the  older  Hopi.  A  glimpse  of  the  clinging 
to  the  myth  of  the  golden  age  is  shown  by  the  speech 
of  the  old  chief  Nashihiptuwa,  to  whom  the  past 
was  an  ideal  time  of  plenty  and  contentment  under 
the  bright  sky  of  Tusayan. 

It  was  Sunday  and  the  camp  by  a  peach  orchard 
in  a  deep  valley  at  the  Middle  Mesa  was  made  lively 

is  "Preliminary  account  of  an  expedition  to  the  cliff 
villages  of  the  Red  Rock  country;  and  the  Tusayan  ruins  of 
Sikyatki  and  Awatobi,  Arizona,  in  1895."  By  J.  Walter 
Fewkes,  from  the  Smithsonian  Report  for  1895,  pp.  568-569. 


214  MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND 

by  the  presence  of  about  thirty  Indian  laborers,  most 
ly  Walpi  "boys."  Far  above  on  the  rocky  mesas 
could  be  seen  three  Hopi  towns  which  bear  names 
difficult  of  pronunciation,  "The  place  of  peaches" 
being  most  picturesque.  To  the  West  were  innum 
erable  barren  hillocks,  furrowed  and  gullied,  rising 
toward  the  warm  sandstone  cliffs  bearing  the  pueblos 
at  the  top.  Along  the  wash  which  from  time  im 
memorial  had  been  carving  out  this  wonderfully 
sculptured  valley  were  the  bean  and  melon  patches 
of  the  Indians,  and  on  the  higher  ground  dark  green 
pea«h  orchards.  Out  of  the  mouth  of  the  valley  there 
stretched  the  wide  plain,  merging  into  the  many- 
hued  desert. 

On  this  particular  Sunday  the  exploring  party  felt 
out  of  sorts.  The  Indian  workmen  who  had  been 
digging  in  the  ruins  of  an  ancient  pueblo  near  by 
had  been  served  notice  by  the  chief  of  the  neighboring 
village  to  quit  and  a  warning  sent  to  our  party  in  this 
wise,  "Go  away,  you  are  bad;  you  bring  the  wind  and 
keep  away  the  rains."  This  is  a  grave  charge  in  a 
country  where  winds  disperse  the  thunder  clouds  with 
their  precious  burden  before  they  reach  the  corn  fields. 
No  invention  could  devise  a  more  damaging  statement. 
The  Walpi,  who  are  freer  from  superstition  than  most 
of  the  Hopi,  felt  less  desire  to  earn  the  coveted  silver 
after  this  announcement.  Finally  it  was  decided  to 
ask  Nashihiptuwa  to  a  council,  talk  it  over  with  him 
and  persuade  him  to  withdraw  his  ultimatum.  A 


I 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  215 

boy  was  dispatched  to  find  him  in  his  field  where  he 
was  at  work. 

Shortly  the  old  chief  of  Shumopavi  appeared  in 
the  distance,  clad  in  a  breech-clout  and  with  a  hoe  on 
his  shoulder.  He  stopped  outside  the  camp  and  put 
on  an  abbreviated  cotton  shirt,  making  himself  some 
what  more  presentable.  Squatting  on  the  sand  with 
hands  clasped  around  the  knees,  a  favorite  Indian 
posture,  the  superannuated  chief  helped  himself  to 
tobacco  and  prepared  for  the  argument  with  the 
circle  of  interested  listeners.  The  day  was  very  warm 
and  a  bank  of  clouds  slowly  coming  up  from  the  San 
Francisco  Mountains  seemed  to  promise  rain  which 
might  convince  the  old  man  of  the  fallacy  of  his  views. 
Hence  the  progress  of  this  rain  storm  was  an  object 
of  uncommon  solicitude  to  the  explorers.  Dan,  a 
school  boy,  who  had  been  taught  English,  acted  as 
interpreter. 

After  a  few  preliminary  remarks  in  which  the  old 
chief  craftily  laid  the  blame  of  the  edict  to  the  chief 
of  another  town  whom  all  the  Middle  Mesa  people 
fear,  the  discussion  began  as  to  whether  the  contact 
with  the  white  man  had  been  beneficial  or  injurious 
to  the  Hopi.  Since  circumstances,  geographical  and 
governmental,  have  conspired  to  keep  the  Hopi  away 
from  strong  drink  and  other  contaminations,  the  white 
man  had  a  better  case  than  usual.  On  his  side  the 
old  chief  mumbled  that  in  the  good  old  times  the 
fields  were  more  fruitful,  the  country  covered  with 


216  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

grass  waist  high,  there  were  no  cares,  the  people  were 
happy  and  long-lived,  the  gods  propitious,  Urukiwa, 
the  wind-god,  did  not  drive  away  the  rains;  now  all 
this  was  changed. 

The  Walpi  spokesman  then  in  his  turn  pointed  out 
the  benefits  which  the  white  man  had  brought.  Said 
he: 

'•'"*'  What  were  we  before  the  white  man  from  the  far 
water  came?  Half  naked,  working  our  scanty  crops 
with  hoes  of  wood,  often  suffering  from  famine  as  the 
traditions  relate,  without  sheep  and  beasts  of  burden, 
without  peach  trees  and  many  vegetables,  without 
sugar,  flour  and  tobacco,  and  driven  from  place  to 
place  in  the  deserts  by  our  ancient  enemies.  Where 
did  you  get  your  shirt,  your  cotton  cloth,  and  your 
hoe  ?  Has  not  Wasintona  given  us  wagons  and  many 
other  things,  and  protected  us  from  the  Navaho  and 
Apache  ?  The  white  man  is  posh  lolomi, '  very  good. '  ' 

The  old  man  seemed  vexed  at  the  force  of  this  argu 
ment,  and  he  began  a  speech  which  lasted,  it  seemed 
to  the  listeners,  about  two  hours.  It  is  a  loss  to  sci 
ence  that  this  speech  could  not  be  taken  down.  As 
near  as  could  be  gathered  he  began  at  the  beginning 
when  the  people  came  up  from  the  underworld,  and 
traced  the  history  through  its  various  stages,  detailing 
the  events,  weaving  in  ancient,  lore  arguing,  expand 
ing,  and  digressing  until  he  brought  it  down  to  the 
present. 

As  he  drew  his  remarks  to  a  close,  a  blast  of  wind 
charged  with  sand  blew  down  the  canvas  sun-shade. 
The  old  chief  found  in  this  a  corroboration  of  his 
contention,  and,  in  the  confusion,  seized  his  hoe  and  a 
can  of  peaches,  which  was  a  present,  and  made  off 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  217 

angrily,  firing  as  a  parting  shot,  "Go  away;  you  are 
very  bad!" 

It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  say  that  the  next  day, 
bright  and  early,  witnessed  the  exodus  of  all  strangers 
from  that  quiet  valley  near  the  Middle  Mesa,  Nashi- 
hiptuwa,  clad  in  his  natural  wrinkled  bronze  costume, 
was  hoeing  in  his  bean  patch,  looking  neither  to  the 
right  nor  to  the  left. 


BRIEF  BIOGRAPHIES 

The  former  chief  Snake  Priest  of  Walpi  was  a 
young  man  of  good  presence,  of  splendid  physique, 
with  regular  features  and  grave,  dignified  look;  in 
whose  face  there  seemed  to  be  often  a  trace  of  melan 
choly,  arising  perhaps  from  deep  thought.  For  it 
takes  a  man  to  be  Snake  Priest,  and  the  office  brings 
out  all  there  is  in  one. 

Kopeli  was  as  well  trained  as  any  civilized  man 
whatsoever,  taking  into  consideration  the  demands 
of  the  different  planes  of  culture.  Education  is  as 
general  among  these  Indians  as  it  is  among  the  more 
enlightened  people.  It  would  be  too  long  to  go  into 
details,  but  briefly  the  Hopi  child 's  life  is  largely  a 
kindergarten  of  play-instruction  by  kind  teachers  of 
things  useful  in  active  life.  He  is  wrapped  in  the  cus 
toms  which  have  become  religion,  he  is  initiated  into 
manhood,  and  takes  his  place,  perhaps  inherited,  in  the 
fraternities.  With  all  these  he  is  taught  the  lore,  the 
practices,  and  the  songs  —  minutiae  which  require  a 
strong  memoiy.  He  learns  the  plants  and  the  ani 
mals  to  which  the  Hopi  had  given  descriptive  names 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  219 

long  before  Linnaeus  or  Cuvier.  The  sun  is  his  clock, 
and  ail  nature  is  near  to  him.  lie  must  work  also  in 
the  fields  if  he  would  eat  —  no  drones  are  tolerated. 
In  short,  there  is  a  surprising  complexity  in  this  life, 
and  its  demands  are  weighty.  Thus  Kopeli  at  the 
head  of  the  most  powerful  and  awe-inspiring  society 
of  his  people  has  been  put  to  many  tests  and  bore 
upon  his  shoulders  the  weight  of  immemorial  custom. 

While  there  was  in  Kopeli  a  dignity  which  com 
mands  respect  from  the  mirthful  Hopi,  he  could  on  oc 
casion  be  as  entertaining  as  any  of  his  tribe,  and  us 
ually  was  cheerful  and  friendly.  The  exception  is 
when  the  Snake  rites  are  in  progress.  Then  he  seemed 
a  different  person,  and  it  was  not  proper  for  him  to 
recognize  his  best  friend. 

The  Walpi  Snake  Ceremony,  of  which  the  public 
dance  is  known  to  many  persons,  is  well  worth  braving 
the  journey  to  see.  The  grand  entry  of  the  Snake 
and  Antelope  priests  on  the  dance  plaza  headed  by 
Kopeli  and  Wiki  is  one  of  the  most  impressive  specta 
cles  that  can  be  witnessed  on  this  continent.  There 
is  so  much  energy  put  into  the  work;  with  strides 
positively  tragic,  the  file  of  strangely  costumed  priests 
march  to  the  kisi,  where  the  snakes  have  been  deposit 
ed.  Then  commences  the  weird  dance  with  live  rattle 
snakes  held  in  the  mouth  to  the  distant  chant  of 
Antelope  priests.  Kopeli  was  here  at  his  best.  He  was 
a  notable  figure;  no  other  participant  displayed  such 
eagerness  and  force.  These  were  some  of  the  salient 


\ 


220  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

elements  of  his  character,  and  by  these  he  succeeded, 
whether  as  a  farmer  as  as  Snake  Priest,  and  took 
his  high  position  among  his  people.  There  is  an  in 
teresting  mingling  of  the  old  and  new  at  Walpi. 
Kopeli  became  a  typical  example  of  the  union  of 
past  and  present.  Wiki,  his  Nestor,  was  in  every 
fiber  imbued  with  the  usages  and  traditions  of  the 
past.  One  instinctively  admires  the  old  man's  firm 
belief,  and  his  respect  for  the  ancient  ceremonies. 
The  leaven  of  the  new  was  in  Kopeli,  as  may  be  seen 
from  the  following.  A  wide-awake  town  in  New  Mex 
ico  wanted  the  Hopi  Snake  Dance  reproduced  at  the 
fair  held  there  in  the  autumn,  realizing  that  it  would 
be  a  feature  to  attract  many  visitors.  Kopeli  was  ap 
proached  and  offered  what  seemed  to  him  a  large 
sum  of  money  for  the  performance.  Though  in  some 
doubt  as  to  the  care  and  transportation  of  the  snakes, 
Kopeli  and  the  younger  snake  priests  were  tempted 
to  favor  the  scheme,  through  his  avaricious  father, 
Supela,  When  Wiki,  chief  of  the  related  society  of  the 
Antelopes,  heard  the  proposal,  he  became  very  angry 
and  put  his  foot  down,  reading  the  young  men  of  lax 
morals  a  severe  lecture  on  their  duties  to  their  re 
ligion. 

Even  had  this  plan  been  carried  out  and  had  proved 
a  death  blow  to  the  so-called  pagan  and  heathenish 
rites  of  the  Hopi,  one  would  have  regretted  Kopeli 's 
share  in  it.  It  is  well  known,  too,  that,  at  present, 
money  will  admit  strangers  to  view  the  sacred  rites 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  221 

of  the  Snake  Dance,  which  formerly  were  kept  in 
violably  secret.  Evidently,  the  Hopi  are  deteriorating, 
when  they  barter  their  religion  for  silver ;  at  no  dis 
tant  date,  when  the  elder  men  are  dead,  the  curious 
ceremonies  of  the  Hopi  will  decay  and  disappear,  and 
let  us  trust  that  a  new  and  better  light  may  be  given 
them. 

Some  years  ago  Kopeli  passed  from  the  scene, 
and  his  brother,  "  Harry,  '*  took  his  place  as  Snake 
Chief. 

Dr.  J.  Walter  Fewkes  has  given  an  estimate  of  him 
as  follows: 

Kopeli,  the  Snake  chief  at  the  Tusayan  pueblo  of 
Walpi,  Arizona,  died  suddenly  on  January  2,  1899. 
He  was  the  son  of  Saliko,  the  oldest  woman  of  the 
Snake  clan,  which  is  one  of  the  most  influential  as 
well  as  one  of  the  most  ancient  in  Tusayan.  His 
father  was  Supela,  one  of  the  chiefs  of  the  Patki,  or 
Rain-cloud  people,  who  came  to  Walpi  from  southern 
Arizona  about  the  close  of  the  seventeenth  century. 
As  chief  of  the  Snake  priests  at  Walpi  in  the  last 
five  presentations  of  the  Snake  dance  at  that  pueblo, 
Kopeli  has  come  to  be  one  of  the  best  known  of  all 
the  Hopi  Indians.  He  inherited  his  badge  of  office 
as  Snake  Chief  from  his  uncle,  and  was  the  only 
chief  in  Tusayan  who  had  a  Snake  tiponi.  His  pre 
decessor  in  this  duty  was  Nuvaiwinu,  his  uncle,  who 
is  still  living,  and  who  led  the  Snake  priests  in  a 
single  ceremony,  after  which  it  was  found  necessary 
for  him  to  retire  on  account  of  his  infirmities.  At 
the  celebration  of  the  Snake  dance  in  1883,  described 
by  Bourke,  Natciwa,  an  uncle  of  Kopeli,  was  Snake 


222  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

chief.  The  oldest  Snake  chief  of  whom  I  can  get 
any  information  was  Murpi,  a  contemporary  of  Ma- 
cali,  the  Antelope  chief  preceding  Wiki.  Kopeli  was 
a  relative  on  his  mother's  side  of  both  these  men. 
At  the  time  of  his  death  Kopeli  was  not  far  from 
twenty-five  years  of  age;  he  had  a  strong,  vigorous 
constitution,  was  of  medium  size,  with  an  attractive 
face  and  dignified  manner  that  won  him  many  friends 
both  among  his  own  people  and  the  Americans  with 
whom  he  was  brought  in  contact.  He  was  a  thor 
oughly  reliable  man,  industrious  and  self-respecting. 
/Although  a  conscientious  chief  of  one  of  the  most 
I  conservative  priesthoods  in  Walpi,  he  was  a  zealous 
I  friend  of  the  whites,  and  supported  innovations  in- 
|  troduced  by  them  for  the  good  of  his  people.  He 
believed  in  the  efficacy  of  the  ceremonial  rites  of  his 
ancestors  and  performed  his  duty  as  priest  without 
shirking.  As  Mr.  Thomas  V.  Keam,  who  knows  the 
Walpi  people  better  than  any  other  white  man,  told 
the  chiefs  in  council  a  few  days  after  the  Snake 
chief's  death:  "Kopeli  was  the  best  man  of  the 
Hopis. "  He  was  a  pac  lolomai  taka,  an  excellent 
man,  whose  heart  was  good  and  whose  speech  was 
straight.  To  most  Americans  who  are  interested  in 
the  Hopi,  Kopeli  was  simply  the  energetic  chief  in 
barbaric  attire,  who  dashed  into  the  Walpi  plaza  lead 
ing  his  Snake  priests  in  the  biennial  Snake  dance. 
This  is  one  of  the  most  striking  episodes  of  the  cere 
mony,  and  its  dramatic  effect  is  not  equaled  in  any  of 
the  other  pueblos.  It  was  through  Kopeli 's  influ 
ence  that  the  Snake  dance  at  Walpi  was  the  largest 
and  most  striking  of  these  weird  ceremonies  in  the 
i  Hopi  pueblos.  Kopeli  welcomed  the  educational 
!  movement  and  had  two  children  in  the  school  at 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  223 

Ream's  Canyon  at  the  time  of  his  death.  He  was 
buried  among  the  rocks  at  the  base  of  the  Walpi  mesa 
with  simple  ceremonies  appropriate  to  a  chief  of  his 
standing.17 

Wiki,  the  genial,  good-heart ed  old  chief  of  the 
Antelope  Society  was  one  of  the  celebrities  of  Walpi. 
His  very  presence  breathed  benignity  and  his  heart 
was  full  of  kindness.  The  years  were  telling  on  Wiki, 
however,  and  the  marks  of  age  were  becoming  apparent 
in  his  wrinkled  face.  He  gave  one  the  impression  of 
a  Hopi  gentleman  of  the  old  school,  a  survivor  of  the 
best  of  the  past  generation.  Still,  Wiki 's  form  was  not 
bent,  nor  his  hair  gray,  and  he  led  the  Antelope 
dance  with  all  the  fire  of  youth.  Stored  away  in  his 
brain  was  a  vast  stock  of  ancient  lore,  of  legend,  myth, 
and  song.  Since  he  was  quite  deaf,  his  body  of  in 
formation  was  somewhat  difficult  of  access. 

Wiki  maintained  a  certain  dignity  and  attention  to 
his  own  affairs,  which  commendable  trait  a  few  of  the 
prominent  Hopi  possess.  He  has  long  been  known 
by  the  scientific  explorers  who  have  visited  Tusayan, 
and  all  Who  have  come  in  contact  with  him  speak 
highly  of  his  good  qualities. 

Supela  is  in  some  respects  the  antithesis  of  Wiki. 
Wiki  was  identified  with  the  Antelope  Society  or 
brotherhood,  Supela  assumed  a  part  in  everything. 
Great  must  be  Supela  ?s  ability,  since  he  is  capable  of 
counselling  the  numerous  societies  on  any  doubtful 

IT  American  Anthropologist    (N.  S.),  Vol.  I,  Jan..  1899. 


224  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

points  in  their  rites  and  ceremonies.  In  fact,  it  seems 
that  no  observance  in  Walpi  can  get  along  without  his 
aid,  and  even  the  farther  towns  often  call  upon  him  to 
assist  them  in  delicate  points  involved  in  the  conduct 
of  their  religious  celebrations. 

It  is  time  we  should  have  a  pen  picture  of  him. 
Short  of  stature,  thick,  gray  hair  hanging  to  his 
shoulders  around  a  not  unpleasant,  mobile  face. 
Nervous  of  movement,  cordial,  but  occupied  with 
pressing  business,  going  somewhere,  has  scarcely  time 
more  than  to  ask  a  few  curious  questions,  he  seems  to 
have  the  burden  of  Atlas  on  his  shoulders.  He  re 
sembles  a  promoter  or  a  ward  politician  and  he  covers 
more  ground  in  a  day  than  Wiki  could  in  a  week. 

If  Supela  seems  head  and  front  of  everything  re 
ligious  in  the  summer,  in  the  winter  he  plays  a  more 
prominent  part  in  the  Soyaluna,  which  is  held  at  the 
last  of  December.  Of  this  wonderful  sun  ceremony 
he  is  chief,  and  is  as  illustrious  a  personage  to  the  Hopi 
as  Santa  Glaus  is  to  the  fair-skinned  children.  At 
this  time  Supela  is  in  his  element  and  proud  of  him 
self  to  the  last  degree,  for  does  he  not  regulate  the 
rites  that  are  to  bring  back  the  sun  from  his  far 
winter  wanderings? 

Wiki  was  a  man  of  action,  coming  forward  to  add 
power  and  dignity  to  that  most  astounding  ceremony 
ever  originated  by  human  brain,  the  Snake  Dance; 
Supela  is  a  man  of  craft,  a  worker  by  formulas  and 
incantations,  but  first  and  last  a  believer  in  getting 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  225 

all  the  silver  he  can  in  return  for  an  insight  into  the 
mysteries  —  a  thing  that  Wiki  has  never  stooped  to 
countenance. 

There  are  first  families  in  Tusayan.  Saalako  enjoys 
the  distinction  of  being  by  birthright  the  chief  snake 
priestess  of  all  Hopiland.  Hence  Kopeli,  her  son, 
was  chief  priest  of  the  powerful  Snake  Society  in  that 
metropolis  of  Tusayan,  Walpi ;  while  Supela,  her  hus 
band,  has  no  credit  for  his  share  in  passing  on  the 
inheritance.  At  present,  her  son  "Harry"  is  the 
Snake  Chief  in  place  of  the  beloved  Kopeli. 

Saalako  is  an  old,  wise  woman.  The  mystery  which 
hangs  around  her  is  born  of  her  connection  with  the 
fearful  rites  of  the  Snake  cult  and  her  store  of  the 
knowledge  which  has  been  passed  down  from  time  im 
memorial  "by  living  wrords  from  lips  long  dust." 
This  connection  carries  her  to  distant  pueblos  to  mix 
the  "medicine"  for  the  ceremonies,  no  one  in  the 
whole  province  being  better  versed  in  herbs  and  spells 
than  she.  One  might  meet  her  on  this  errand  far 
out  in  the  desert  or  among  the  rugged  mesas  on  the 
trail  to  Oraibi,  afoot,  moving  actively  for  a  person 
apparently  so  frail.  It  is  difficult  to  measure,  es 
pecially  in  a  limited  time  and  short  acquaintance,  the 
respect  and  honor  given  by  the  "Walpi  people  to  Saala 
ko  and  the  Snake  Chief 's  family.  It  would  seem  that 
there  is  a  certain  dignity  and  reserve  natural  to  peo 
ple  of  rank,  although  in  the  common  associations  the 
Hopi  are  quite  democratic.  In  any  case  Saalako  is 


226  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

free  from  the  habit  of  begging,  so  often  observed 
among  her  people,  which  is  probably  due  to  this  dig 
nity.  It  is  very  evident,  however,  that  the  vice  of 
begging  is  becoming  general  among  the  Pueblos  which 
have  been  most  in  contact  with  white  people. 

This  sketch  of  Saalako  would  be  incomplete  without 
the  mention  of  her  chief  shortcoming,  inordinate 
curiosity.  Apologists  commend  rather  than  excuse 
laudable  curiosity,  affirming  it  to  be  a  desirable  quality 
in  an  investigator.  No  doubt  Saalako  owes  her  ac 
quaintance  with  nature  to  this  class,  but  she  is  famous 
for  curiosity  in  other  minor  matters.  No  visitor  to 
Wapli  escapes  the  ordeal  of  her  questions,  and  popular 
account  has  it  that  very  few  happenings  escape  her 
notice.  The  Hopi  of  both  sexes  are  most  curious; 
Saalako  has  the  trait  in  greater  degree.  The  hoary 
error  of  attributing  curiosity  to  woman  alone  has 
small  countenance  in  Hopi.  However,  Saalako 's  curi 
osity  is  well  meaning  and  harmless.  It  is  only  an  ex 
pression  of  the  infantile  which  blossoms  in  this  peace 
ful  and  isolated  people. 

Saalako  felt  it  her  duty  to  give  a  name  to  one  of  the 
exploring  party  under  the  direction  of  Dr.  Fewkes. 
After  several  days  meditation,  having  tried  and  re 
jected  several  queer  sounding  appellations,  she  at 
last  dubbed  him  Kuktaimu,  briefly,  "Investigator," 
and  kindly  offered  to  adopt  him ;  the  adoption,  how 
ever,  was  not  consummated.  Kuktaimu  owes  his  name 
to  the  ardor  with  which  he  collected  plants,  insects, 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  227 

and  geological  specimens,  this  not  escaping  the  sharp 
eyes  of  Saalako. 

This  sketch  is  given  as  a  tribute  to  a  remarkable 
Hopi  woman  whose  history  is  worthy  of  fuller  pre 
sentation. 

Intiwa  was  another  celebrity  whose  acquaintance 
early  ripened  into  a  regard  for  his  true  worth.  His 
was  a  modest  personality ;  in  him  one  saw  the  living 
presentment  of  the  sages  who  guided  the  people  before 
America  dawned  upon  history.  A  striking  instance 
that  came  to  notice  concerning  him  gives  an  interest 
ing  sidelight  on  Hopi  customs. 

One  day  Intiwa  went  down  to  his  corn-field  to  see 
how  the  crops  were  getting  on.     As  he  was  reaching 
under  the  drooping  corn  blades,  feeling  for  the  ripen 
ing  ears,  a  rattlesnake  struck  him  on  the  hand.     He 
hurried  home  and   applied   all   the  remedies  whie 
Hopi  medical  knowledge  could  suggest,  but  got  n 
relief.     Some  white  visitors  who  happened  to  be  n 
were  called  in  and  did  all  they  could  for  the  man,  anc 
finally,  after  much  suffering,  Intiwa  recovered.     No\ 
comes  the  curious  sequel  of  the  snake  bite.     The  Snak 
Fraternity  decided  that  Intiwa,  being  specially  fa 
vored  by  the  bite  of  the  snake,  must  of  necessity  belong 
to  their  order.     Perhaps  Intiwa  was  not  impressec 
with  the  alleged  favor  of  the  snake.    Still  he  took  th 
initiation  and  became  a  full-fledged  snake  priest.   This 
is  the  first  record  of  such  happening  in  Tusayan. 

Beside  the  honor  thus  thrust  upon  him,  Intiwa  was 


228  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

the  Kachwia  chief  of  Walpi,  and  thus  an  important 
man,  the  impresario  and  chief  entertainer  of  his  town, 
honored  by  the  rain-bringing  serpent,  blessed  with  a 
large  family,  ample  house  and  abundant  food  —  gifts 
no  doubt  of  the  good  fairy  Kachina. 

Several  years  ago  Intiwa  took  a  journey  to  the 
underworld  across  the  deserts  and  down  through  the 
sipapu,  or  earth-navel,  finding  at  last  that  wondrous 
land  whence  all  people  came  out  and  where  they 
finally  must  return,  according  to  Hopi  belief.  Walpi 
will  suffer  the  loss  of  his  great  knowledge ;  who  knows 
but  that  he  will  emerge,  and,  sitting  with  the  zealous 
kachinas,  watch  over  the  scene  of  his  earthly  triumphs  ? 

The  first  meeting  with  the  Hopi  and  with  the  Ho- 
nani  family  was  one  of  the  most  pleasurable  experi 
ences  of  the  journey  from  Winslow  to  the  Middle 
Mesa  several  years  ago. 

The  party  had  toiled  to  the  north  for  nearly  three 
days  through  the  brilliantly  painted  deserts  that  lie 
between  the  Little  Colorado  and  the  Hopi  villages. 
The  grotesque  black  buttes  whose  contours  had 
changed  so  many  times  during  the  journey  were  left 
behind  to  the  south  and  the  gray  cretaceous  mesas 
began  to  narrow  in  on  the  dry  washes,  fringed  with 
sage-green  desert  plants  that  characterize  the  region 
of  the  Hopi  villages.  Everyone  felt  that  though  many 
miles  of  loose  sand  still  intervened,  this  was  the  home 
stretch  to  the  goal.  Far  ahead  on  the  plain  several 
black  dots  were  sighted,  and  with  lively  interest  the 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  229 

party  began  to  speculate  as  to  what  they  might  be. 
After  a  while  it  could  be  seen  that  a  mounted  party 
was  coming,  perhaps  Navaho  on  first  thought,  likely 
Hopi  on  reflection.  Soon  they  were  decided  to  be  a 
number  of  Hopi  mounted  on  burros  and  ponies,  and 
in  a  short  time  they  were  greeting  the  Americans  with 
the  fervor  of  a  long-lost  brother,  their  faces  wreathed 
with  smiles.  These,  then,  were  the  tactiturn  Indians 
of  the  story-books. 

Honani,  "the  Badger,"  citizen  of  Shumopavi,  was 
escorting  his  family  on  an  outing  of  many  miles  after 
berries.  Berries,  such  as  they  are,  do  grow  in  the 
desert,  but  they  may  be  enjoyed  only  by  those  who 
never  tasted  any  other  variety.  Honani 's  wife  and 
her  three  pretty  daughters  were  astride  ponies,  while 
the  baby  was  securely  fastened  in  his  mother's  blanket; 
the  old  grandfather  and  grandmother  who  bestrode 
burros  made  up  the  rest  of  the  party,  which  formed  a 
very  picturesque  group.  The  women  asked  for  water, 
and  Honani  spoke  the  magic  word  pi b a,  tobacco,  fol 
lowed  by  the  word,  matchi.  These  words  one  very  soon 
finds  are  the  indispensable  preliminary  to  a  "smoke 
talk"  in  Hopiland. 

Honani 's  better  half  is  no  light  weight.  So  thought 
her  pony  which,  without  warning,  proceeded  to  lie 
down.  Amidst  the  screaming  and  chattering,  the 
stout  lady  managed  to  extricate  herself,  being  much 
hampered  by  her  prudence  in  tying  her  blanket  to  the 
horn  of  the  saddle.  When  all  were  quieted  and  the 


230  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPJLAND 

pony  soundly  thumped,  they  started  again  on  their 
way  berrying. 

Honani  is  quite  a  prominent  man  and  was  one  time 
chief  of  his  pueblo.  He  is  one  of  the  very  few  Hopi 
who  have  made  the  grand  tour  to  Washington  —  Wa,s- 
into'tia,  as  they  call  it.  He  has  a  farm  in  the  country, 
where  he  lives  in  summer.  The  vagrant  Navaho  who 

»i_   i      i  mt^ff^ 

encroach  on  his  premises  are  the  bane  of  his  life,  and 
when  none  of  this  tribe  is  near  he  wishes  them  all 
sorts  of  unpleasant  tilings.  Honani  himself  is  no 
saint ;  from  all  accounts,  it  is  advisable  to  leave  noth 
ing  loose  while  he  is  around.  His  wife  has  a  pleas 
ant,  matronly  face  that  one  cannot  help  admiring. 
She  is  a  skillful  basket-maker  and  keeps  her  house 
neat  and  clean,  which  is  more  than  can  be  said  of 
her  contemporaries. 

There  is  a  good  deal  of  feeling,  mingled  with  a 
large  element  of  jealousy,  against  Honani  in  the  minds 
of  his  fellow  villagers,  because  of  his  friendliness  to 
ward  the  white  man  and  his  stand  in  favor  of  educat 
ing  the  children  in  the  schools  provided  by  the  Gov- 
eTnment.  At  Zuiii,  through  some  pretext  or  other, 
Honani  would  be  hung  as  a  wizard,  whereas  the  am 
icable  Hopi  merely  ignore  him  for  a  while. 

On  another  occasion,  while  the  party  was  encamped 
in  a  sheltered  valley  of  the  Middle  Mesa,  the  "Ho- 
nanis"  came  visiting.  It  was  about  supper  time;  the 
connection  of  the  time  and  visit  needs  no  explanation. 
Among  the  scanty  utensils  of  the  party  two  cans  of 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  231 

similar  shape  contained  respectively  salt  and  sugar. 
Honani  's  wife  liberally  sweetened  her  coffee  and  gave 
the  baby  a  taste.  In  a  moment  his  hitherto  placid 
face  assumed  the  contortions  of  a  Hindu  idol,  and  he 
squirmed  and  yelled.  His  mother,  not  knowing  what 
was  the  matter,  shook  him  and  punched  his  fat  stom 
ach  to  find  out.  Then  she  took  a  sip  of  coffee  and 
screamed  out,  "Ingiwa!"  (salt).  Her  reproachful 
look  seemed  to  convey  the  idea  that  someone  had  de 
signs  on  the  baby.  A  few  words  of  explanation  soon 
put  her  mind  at  rest  on  that  score,  and  smiles  were 
again  restored.  When  she  heard  that  several  of  the 
party  had  been  at  times  sufferers  from  those  same  ma 
licious  salt  and  sugar  boxes,  she  enjoyed  the  joke  huge 
ly;  fellow  sufferers  are  always  appreciated  the  world 
over. 

There  is  at  least  one  open  and  above-board  infidel 
at  the  East  Mesa.  Chakwaina  is  his  name,  and  he  is  a 
Tewa  of  Hano.  The  old  nature  faith  in  this  pueblo 
does  not  show  many  signs  of  weakening,  so  that  were 
Chakwaina  less  in  possessions  and  in  consequent  influ 
ence,  he  might  have  been  brought  to  book  long  ago 
for  his  sins.  Chakwaina  says  "the  ka^hinas  are  no 
good. ' '  Perhaps  the  poor  people  who  so  depend  on  the 
crops  for  their  existence  believe  devoutly  in  the  gift- 
bearing  kachinas  from  ignorance  or  selfish  motives, 
while  Chakwaina,  who  has  sheep,  flour,  and  money, 
feels  independent  of  any  spiritual  aids ;  this  is  the  old 
storv.  Chakwaina  undoubtedlv  feels  able  to  take  care 


232  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

of  himself,  for  no  one  has  succeeded  in  getting  ahead 
of  him  at  a  bargain.  Of  course  when  a  pair  of  sheep 
shears  or  a  stone  is  too  frequently  found  in  a  bag  of 
wool  after  weighing,  people  will  suspect  cheating.  It- 
is  well  to  keep  watch  on  Chakwaina ! 

On  the  other  hand,  Chakwaina  was  one  of  the  first 
to  move  down  permanently  from  the  mesa  when  the 
Government  offered  inducements  to  the  Hopi  to 
descend  from  their  eyrie.  He  has  always  been  friend 
ly  to  the  white  people ;  he  aided  in  the  establishment 
of  a  day  school  at  the  ''Sun  Spring,"  and  used  his 
influence  to  persuade  the  people  to  send  pupils  to 
the  school  at  Keam's  Canyon.  He  has  also  traveled 
much,  adding  Spanish,  Navaho,  and  a  smattering  of 
"American"  to  his  Hopi- Te wan  repertory  of  lan 
guages,  for  the  Tewa,  besides  being  the  most  pro 
gressive  inhabitants  of  Tusayan,  are  the  best  linguists. 
This  is  due  to  the  fact  that  the  people  of  the  little 
town  of  Hano  have  preserved  their  own  language,  and 
being  within  a  stone-throw  of  Walpi,  must  also  know 
Hopi.  Hence  the  step  toward  learning  other  tongues 
is  made  easier. 

Chakwaina  has  his  house  near  Ishba,  or  "wolf 
spring, ' '  in  very  picturesque  surroundings.  Below,  in 
the  wash,  are  his  cornfields  and  melon  patches,  show 
ing  skillful  engineering  in  diverting  the  water  on  the 
arable  ground  by  means  of  dams  and  wings.  Here 
he  and  his  faithful  adjutant,  "Tom  Sawyer,"  the 
Paiute,  put  in  many  a  laborious  hour,  the  latter  waging 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  233 

deadly  warfare  on  the  obnoxious  prairie  dogs  whose 
fate  is  to  be  eaten  if  caught. 

Chakwaina  is  disposed  to  poke  fun  at  the  scientific 
men  who  come  to  Tusayan  to  study  the  ways  of  the 
Hopi.  He  has  a  remarkable  laugh,  and  his  mimicry 
of  the  Snake  Dance  is  one  of  the  most  amusing  things 
to  be  seen  in  Hopiland.  His  object  is  to  ridicule  all 
parties  by  making  himself  ridiculous.  It  is  evident 
that  Chakwaina  has  not  the  accustomed  contentment  of 
the  Hopi.  Having  denied  the  first  article  of  faith  in 
the  kachinas  and  having  received  nothing  higher  in 
return,  he  stands  in  the  unhappy  position  of  all  un 
believers  of  whatever  race  or  time. 

A  portrait  gallery  of  the  celebrities  of  Tusayan 
would  not  be  complete  without  Mungwe,  or,  as  his 
name  is  translated,  "El  Capitan,"  "Cap"  for  short; 
but  his  name  is  properly  Hong  we, ' '  the  owl. ' '  li  Cap ' ' 
is  a  Tewa  whose  ancestors  were  invited  long  ago  to 
come  from  the  Rio  Grande  and  cast  their  lot  with 
the  Hopi  on  the  Walpi  Mesa.  Here  their  descendants 
still  dwell  in  the  village  of  Hano,  preserving  the 
language  and  customs  transplanted  from  the  "Great 
River  of  the  North. "  "  Cap ' '  is  one  of  the  most  ener 
getic  and  capable  Indians  in  all  Hopiland.  Wiry  in 
figure,  alert  of  movement,  loquacious,  quick  of  com 
prehension,  trustworthy  and  experienced,  he  is  quite 
in  advance  of  the  large  majority  of  his  contempor 
aries.  Long  ago  he  abandoned  the  inconvenient  mesa ; 
his  farm-house  with  its  red  roof  can  be  seen  among 


234  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

his  cornfields  far  out  in  the  broad  valley  to  the  south 
east  of  Walpi.  The  men  who  work  for  Mongwe  seem 
to  be  pervaded  with  his  energy,  and  there  is  no  doubt 
that  he  is  regarded  by  them  as  a  captain  of  industry, 
for  he  allows  no  laggards  to  eat  his  bread.  In  the 
line  of  teaming,  Cap  excels.  No  matter  how  long  or 
bad  the  road  or  how  heavy  the  load,  his  staunch  little 
ponies  will  carry  it  through.  A  rickety  wagon  and 
providence-tempting  harness  seem  to  prove  no  bar 
to  any  attempt,  where  money  is  to  be  earned.  Hence, 
though  a  number  of  the  Hopi  possess  wagons  through 
the  generosity  of  the  Government,  Mongwe  gets  most 
of  the  hauling. 

Our  friend,  alas,  is  not  modest  in  the  announce 
ment  of  his  worth.  It  is  a  subject  on  which  his  tongue 
works  like  a  spinning- jenny.  At  night  after  the  cares 
of  the  day,  sitting  around  the  camp-fire  with  ample 
bread,  unlimited  rashers  of  bacon,  and  a  circle  of 
hearers,  Cap  eats  and  talks  in  the  plural.  The  word 
plural  calls  for  a  sentence  or  two  in  reference  to  Cap's 
wives.  Not  that  he  has  ever  defied  Hopi  customs  to 
the  extent  of  having  more  than  one  wife  at  a  time,  but 
the  list  of  the  ones  who  have  disagreed  with  him,  if 
completely  up  to  date,  would  be  interesting  reading. 
From  what  can  be  gleaned,  in  this  Utopian  land, 
women  have  the  right  of  divorce.  The  relationship 
of  Cap's  children,  it  will  be  seen,  is  very  assorted. 
To  hazard  a  guess,  Cap's  matrimonial  ventures  are 
marred  by  his  general  * '  f ussiness. " 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  235 

Aside  from  this,  Mongwe  is  an  honor  to  Hopiland. 
His  success  has  drawn  to  him  a  party  of  the  v^ung 
generation  who  are  afflicted  with  the  universal  desire  j 
for  shiba  (silver),  and  if  they  are  inspired  with  Mong-  * 
we's  example  it  will  be  a   benefit   to  Tusayan,  the 
Hopi  body  politic,  which  needs  active  young  blood 
to  overcome  the  centuries  of  inertion. 

Another  vivacious  Hopi  is  Wupa,  whose  name  means 
" great."  The  fatherly  interest  which  Wupa  takes 
in  the  white  man  was  sufficient  recommendation  to 
attach  him  to  our  camp  as  man-of -all- work,  and  a  closer 
acquaintance  brought  to  view  other  sides  of  his  char 
acter  in  which  the  gay  features  far  outnumber  the 
grave.  Faithful  to  the  extent  of  his  lights,  though 
averse  to  steady  work,  he  managed  to  earn  his  bread 
and  a  small  stipend,  but  considering  the  entertain 
ment  he  furnished,  his  pay  should  have  been  equal  to 
that  of  the  end-man  in  a  minstrel  show. 

So  it  happens  that  the  memories  of  Wupa  bring 
forth  a  flood  of  pleasing  recollections.  The  merriest 
of  all  that  merry  race  of  laughing,  joking,  singing 
Hopi,  his  presence  around  the  camp-fire  diffused  an 
atmosphere  of  cheerfulness  which  does  not  always  pre 
vail  amidst  the  discomforts  of  roughing-it  in  the 
desert.  Short  of  stature  and  bandy-legged,  possessed 
of  a  headpiece  wrinkled  and  quizzical,  one  cannot  by 
any  stretch  of  the  imagination  make  him  out  hand 
some  ;  but  he  is  so  loquacious,  witty,  and  full  of  tricks 
that  it  is  not  possible  to  doubt  his  fitness  for  the  posi- 


236  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

tion  of  king's  jester.  Wupa  has  his  moods,  though. 
Sometimes  an  air  of  preternatural  gravity  and  un 
speakable  wisdom  enwraps  him ;  very  close  behind  this 
mask,  for  such  it  is,  lurks  a  mirth-provoking  skit  and 
boisterous  laugh.  Like  other  humorists  Wupa  has  the 
fatality  of  being  most  amusing  when  serious.  Still, 
in  the  iridescent  interworld  between  smiles  and  tears 
Wupa  has  a  romantic  and  sad  history. 

The  dramatis  personae  woven  into  this  history  are 
white  men,  Mexicans,  Zurii  Indians,  and  his  fellow 
Hopi.  The  first  misfortune  that  befell  Wupa  was  to 
be  born  at  the  time  when  famine  harried  the  Peaceful 
People  in  their  seven  villages  to  the  north  of  the  Little 
Colorado.  Famine  is  an  old  story  with  the  Hopi. 
For  two  years  no  rain  had  fallen,  and  neither  the 
Snake  nor  the  Flute  dance  availed  to  bring  the  good 
will  of  their  gods.  The  sacredly  reserved  corn  laid  up 
to  tide  over  a  bad  year  had  been  eaten,  and  the  Hopi 
were  in  distress.  They  gathered  the  wild  plants  that 
seem  to  be  independent  of  drought,  and  tried  to  keep 
soul  and  body  together  till  the  rain-clouds  should 
again  sweep  across  the  Painted  Desert ;  but  many  were 
those  who  never  saw  the  time  of  ripe  corn.  Many 
deserted  the  pueblos  and  cast  their  lot  among  the 
Navaho  shepherds,  the  Havasupai  of  Cataract  Canyon, 
and  other  more  fortunate  tribes  of  friendly  people. 

So  it  happened  that  Wupa's  mother  with  her  hungry 
babe  took  the  well-known  trail  to  Zuiii  100  miles  away, 
and  nerved  with  the  strength  of  desperation  at  last 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  237 

reached  the  pueblo  under  "Corn  Mountain."  In 
dian  philanthropy  rarely  extends  outside  the  circle 
of  relatives,  and  the  Zuiii  had  no  mind  to  give  corn  to 
the  poor  Hopi  woman  beyond  enough  to  keep  her  from 
starving.  But  little  Wupa  was  worth  a  bushel  of  the 
precious  ears,  and  for  that  amount  he  was  exchanged, 
becoming,  without  being  consulted,  a  Zuni,  while  his 
mother  trudged  back  to  Hopiland  with  food  for  her 
starving  kinsfolk,  feeling,  no  doubt,  little  sorrow  at  the 
loss  of  her  babe,  so  great  is  the  levelling  power  of 
famine  and  misfortune.  There  are  usually  strays  at 
all  Indian  villages,  and  thus  the  presence  of  the  little 
Hopi  stranger  passed  without  notice.  When  the  crops 
were  assured  in  the  fields  of  the  famine-stricken  Hopi, 
they  ceased  coming  to  Zuni,  and  Wupa  seems  to  have 
been  unclaimed  and  forgotten. 

When  he  was  five  or  six,  the  Zuni  in  turn  sold  him 
to  some  Mexicans,  and  the  next  account  there  is  of 
him  he  was  living  at  Albuquerque,  a  stout  young 
peon,  with  cropped  hair,  a  devout  Catholic,  speaking 
Castilian  after  the  fashion  of  the  " Greasers."  Wupa 
thus  became,  to  all  intents  and  purposes,  a  Mexican, 
and  perhaps  had  lost  sight  of  his  origin.  Neither  is 
the  transition  from  Indian  to  Mexican  at  all  difficult 
or  incongruous.  Few  Americans  realize  the  new 
problem  of  the  population  that  came  to  us  through  the 
treaty  of  GuadalupoHidalgo,  the  clannish,  unpro- 
gressive  foreigners  who  were  made  American  citizens 
without  being  consulted.  It  must  be  said,  however, 


238  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

that  the  Anglo-Saxon  prejudice  of  the  Latin  leaves 
quite  out  of  sight  the  good  qualities  of  the  Mexican ; 
it  rarely  considers  that  his  ignorance  is  due  largely 
to  lack  of  advantages  during  several  centuries,  and 
that  the  strain  of  Indian  blood  has  not  helped  matters. 
According  to  the  white  man 's  way  of  looking  at  it,  this 
listless  race,  seemingly  satisfied  to  be  peons  in  the 
land  of  the  free,  is  inferior  and  doubtfully  classed 
with  the  Indians,  with  the  doubt  in  the  latter 's  favor. 

Wupa  quickly  picked  up  the  language  and  associa 
tions  of  his  accidental  compatriots,  and  soon  the  Padre 
rejoiced  in  another  brand  plucked  from  the  burning. 
His  next  step  was  to  find  a  seiiorita  and  to  marry  her, 
and  after  the  semi-barbarous  wedding  his  woes  really 
begin.  In  explanation  of  the  description  given  of 
Wupa  as  he  appears  at  present,  it  may  be  fair  to  say 
that  twenty  years  off  his  age  would  leave  him  a  passa 
bly  young  man,  but  even  with  this  gloss,  one  cannot 
form  a  very  high  estimate  of  the  seiiorita 's  taste. 

During  the  period  of  Wupa 's  exile,  one  knowing  the 
Hopi  would  be  curious  to  find  out  how  he  bore  him 
self  and  whether  an  inherited  love  for  the  freedom 
of  the  desert  was  ever  shown.  Perhaps  the  early  age 
at  which  he  began  kicking  about  the  world,  and  his 
varied  experiences,  completely  lost  him  to  the  feeling 
of  his  kith  and  kin.  Civilization  is  irksome  to  the 
desert-bred  Hopi  and  he  soon  becomes  as  homesick  for 
his  wand-swept  mesas  as  the  Eskimo  for  his  land  of 
ice  or  the  Bedouin  for  the  Sahara.  These  questions 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  239 

may  have  a  suggested  answer  in  the  home-coming  of 
Wupa,  for  he  returned  again  to  his  native  pueblo  after 
one  of  the  most  varied  and  remarkable  series  of  ad 
ventures  that  ever  filled  out  a  true  story.  The  events 
that  led  up  to  the  home-coming  of  Wupa  form  not  the 
least  interesting  episodes  in  his  history  and  occurred 
along  the  old  Santa  Fe  Trail,  immortalized  by 
Josiah  Gregg.  The  railroad  builders  had  labored 
across  the  plains,  up  the  steep  slopes  of  the  Rockies, 
following  the  famous  trail  to  old  Santa  Fe,  leaving 
behind  two  bands  of  steel.  Blasting,  cutting,  filling, 
and  bridging,  they  were  advancing  toward  quiet  Al 
buquerque  on  the  lazy  Rio  Grande,  and  the  news  of 
these  activities  stirred  that  ancient  town  from  center 
to  circumference. 

The  dwellers  in  the  Southwest  are  brought  squarely 
up  against  the  * '  proposition, ' '  as  they  call  it,  that  one 
must  work  if  he  would  live.  The  Mexicans,  though 
reputed  lazy,  are  on  the  contrary  always  anxious  to 
work  for  wages,  and  the  motley  and  wicked  railroad 
camp  had  a  large  population  of  the  dark-skinned  be 
lievers  in  Montezuma  recruited  from  long  distances. 

Wupa  joined  with  the  Albuquerque  contingent. 
What  his  duties  were  it  is  not  difficult  to  imagine;  his 
skill  in  "rustling"  wood  and  water  in  later  years 
gives  a  good  clue  as  to  his  work  on  the  railroad.  As 
messenger  and  general  utility  boy  where  steady  labor 
was  not  required,  he  no  doubt  proved  useful  and 
picked  up  sundry  pieces  of  silver  for  his  senora. 


240  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

Perhaps  not  the  least  of  his  services  lay  in  his  unfail 
ing  good-humor  expressed  in  cheering  songs  with 
which  he  softened  the  trials  of  railroad  pioneering 
through  that  almost  desert  country. 

The  picturesque  wickedness  of  the  westward  trav 
eling  construction  camp  with  its  fringe  of  saloons, 
gambling  hells,  and  camp  followers  seems  never  to 
have  taken  Wupa  in  its  snares.  Of  shooting  irons  and 
drunken  men  he  had  the  inborn  terror  shown  always 
by  the  Hopi,  a  feeling  still  kept  alive  among  them  by 
that  later  incursion  into  New  Mexico  and  Arizona,  the 
Texas  cowboy.  There  was  no  fight  in  Wupa ;  the  most 
that  could  be  gotten  out  of  him  was  a  disarming  laugh 
and  a  disappearance,  as  soon  as  that  move  could  be 
made.  Picturesque  as  was  the  construction  camp,  the 
stern  side  of  life  came  very  near,  and  the  wonderful 
hues  of  the  landscape  were  but  mockery  to  the  tired 
and  thirsty  men,  who  prepared  the  Santa  Fe  Trail  for 
the  iron  horse.  Poor  food,  worse  water,  alkali  dust, 
parching  heat  and  chilly  nights  of  summer  and  the 
severity  of  winter  were  living  realities;  there  were 
health  and  vigor  in  the  air  of  the  mountains  and  ele 
vated  plateaus,  though  food  and  appetite  did  not  al 
ways  strike  a  balance  of  compensation. 

Wupa  moved  along  with  the  camp,  little  realizing 
the  meaning  of  the  struggle  with  the  drifting  sand, 
the  rocky  canj^ons,  and  the  dry  rivers  that  became 
torrents  and  in  an  hour  swept  away  the  work  of  a 
month,  burying  ties  and  rails  in  the  limbo  of  boiling 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  241 

sand.  By  night  he  rolled  himself  in  his  blanket  and 
after  his  orisons  slept  under  the  brilliant  stars,  while 
his  fellow  Mexicans  snored  in  strangely  assorted  heaps 
among  the  sage-clumps. 

The  rails  came  down  the  treacherous  Puerco  and 
along  the  banks  of  the  Little  Colorado.  To  the  north 
the  dark  blue  Hopi  Domes  reared  their  fantastic  sum 
mits,  signifying  nothing  to  this  expatriated  Indian, 
though  the  mother  who  bore  him  and  sold  him  into 
bondage  waited  for  him  there.  To  the  west  the  San 
Francisco  peaks  stood  always  in  view,  but  Wupa  was 
ignorant  of  the  traditions  of  his  tribe  that  cluster 
around  them.  The  rails  left  the  river,  stretched 
across  a  flat  country,  and  halted  at  the  edge  of  a  tre 
mendous  chasm,  whose  presence  could  not  be  suspected 
until  it  yawned  beneath  the  feet.  Here  the  camp  halt 
ed  for  months,  while  a  spider's  web  of  steel  was  spun 
across  the  Devil's  Canyon. 

One  day  several  Hopi  came  to  the  camp,  and  after 
staring,  open-mouthed,  at  the  labors  of  the  white  man, 
wandered  about,  as  if  looking  for  someone.  Soon  they 
ran  across  Wupa,  and  the  leader  spoke  to  him  in  Hopi 
language  to  this  effect:  "You  are  a  Hopi;  we  come 
to  bring  you  to  your  house."  A  doubtful  shake  of 
the  head  from  "Wupa,  who  did  not  understand  the 
tongue  of  his  people. 

"Yes,  come;  they  sit  up  there  waiting  for  you." 
This  ought  to  have  stirred  in  Wupa  a  desire  to  go  at 
once,  but  he  "no  sabo."  Finally,  after  parleying  in 


242  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

a  mixture  of  Hopi,  Zuiii,  and  Spanish,  pieced  out  here 
and  there  with  sign  language,  they  persuaded  him  to 
desert  the  camp  and  set  out  with  them  for  his  native 
town  a  hundred  miles  to  the  north. 

The  home-coming  of  Wupa  was  a  great  affair,  and 
his  reintr eduction  to  his  mother  was  touching,  for  the 
Hopi  are  more  demonstrative  than  other  Indians.  The 
event  must  hav7lTe^rt^^4im@-^a5Js^  wonder  in  the  gos 
sipy  pueblo  of  Walpi.  His  education  was  taken  up 
at  once  with  the  intention  of  eradicating  the  evil  ef 
fects  of  Mexican  training,  especially  on  the  side  of  his 
religious  instruction.  If  the  grave  priests  are  satis 
fied  with  their  labors  in  helping  Wupa  to  begin  anew 
as  a  Hopi,  an  outsider  would  consider  the  results  as 
rather  mixed.  To  this  day  Wupa  is  taunted  with  be 
ing  a  Mexican ;  these  taunts  he  answers  with  silence 
and  an  air  of  superiority  he  knows  so  well  how  to  as 
sume;  how,  indeed,  can  they  know  what  he  has  gone 
through  in  his  remarkable  experiences  ? 

While  Wupa  was  willing  to  desert  and  become  a 
pagan,  as  were  his  ancestors,  exchanging  the  quaint 
cathedral  of  Albuquerque  with  its  figures  of  saints 
and  grewsome  Corpus  Cristi  in  a  glass  case  for  a 
dimly  lighted  room  underground  and  familiarity  with 
rattlesnakes,  his  seiiora  had  other  ideas.  Wupa 
mourned  that  his  se.fi ora  would  not  cast  her  lot  with 
the  "Peaceful  People"  of  Tusayan;  but  money  was 
scarce  and  the  distance  too  great  for  a  personal  inter 
view  ;  the  letters  written  bv  a  laborious  Mexican  scribe 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  243 

were  productive  of  no  results.  Though  the  seiiora 
might  have  done  worse,  who  will  blame  her?  Dur 
ing  the  years  that  passed  one  might  think  that  Wupa 
would  have  forgotten  his  wife  on  the  Rio  Grande, 
but  it  was  always  the  dream  of  his  life  to  bring  her 
to  him  at  Walpi.  It  was  pathetic  to  hear  his  schemes 
and  to  see  the  way  in  which  he  treasured  letters  from 
her  written  in  the  scrawl  of  the  town  scribe  and  ad 
dressed  to  Seiior  Don  Jose  Padilla,  which  is  Wupa's 
high-sounding  Castilian  name.  His  constancy  seemed 
admirable,  for  he  did  not  take  an  Indian  wife,  granting 
that  he  could  have  secured  one  of  the  Hopi  belles  for 
spouse. 

Still,  with  all  this  care  Wupa  was  light-hearted, 
caroled  with  abandon  Mexican  or  Hopi  songs,  or  in 
toned  solemn  church  music.  Though  a  much-traveled 
man,  he  remained  at  his  native  place,  the  mainstay  of 
his  old  mother  who  sold  him  aforetime,  his  father  long 
since  having  traveled  to  the  underworld.  Hopi-Mex- 
ican,  Pagan-Christian,  he  still  occupies  a.  somewhat 
anomalous  position  among  his  people,  who  have  con 
sistently  hated  the  proud  proselyting  Spaniards  dur 
ing  the  more  than  two  hundred  years  since  they  threw 
the  "long  gowns "  from  the  rocky  mesa. 

About  the  camp  Wupa  was  very  useful.  Mounted 
on  his  agile  burro,  a  sight  well  worth  seeing,  he 
brought  the  mail  from  Keam's  Canyon.  He  collected 
wood  and  water,  indulging  in  many  a  song  and  ex 
clamation.  The  cook  especially  seemed  to  him  a  fit 


244  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

subject  of  jest.  The  cook  was  really  an  adept  at  snor 
ing  and  the  still  watches  of  the  desert  night  were  often 
too  vocal.  Wupa  used  to  sing  out  ''Dawa*  yumu, 
Kook!"  "Daybreak,  cook!''  followed  by  a  fine  imita 
tion  of  snoring  which  the  subject  of  the  jest  did  not 
enjoy.  But  Wupa  was  at  his  best  when  prospecting 
an  ancient  ruin  to  locate  the  most  promising  place  to 
dig  for  relics.  At  such  times  his  gravity  and  wisdom 
fairly  bulged  out.  His  advice  was  clearly  and  forci 
bly  given,  but  the  nemesis  of  humorists  followed  him, 
and  no  one  ever  thought  of  taking  him  seriously.  And 
he  never  seemed  disappointed.  Wupa  is  a  true  hu 
morist,  without  bitterness,  one  to  be  laughed  at  and 
loved.  He  was  almost  tearful  at  parting  and  made 
many  protestations  of  friendship,  at  the  same  time 
presenting  two  watermelons  from  his  field.  These 
melons  were  unripe,  according  to  un-Hopi  standards, 
but  were  received  in  the  spirit  in  which  they  were 
given,  and  later  some  natives  met  on  the  road  to 
Ream's  Canyon  had  an  unexpected  feast. 

The  romance  of  Wupa's  devotion  to  his  Mexican 
senora  and  the  fine  flavor  of  constancy  he  showed  to 
ward  her  received  a  rude  shattering  the  year  after 
the  commencement  of  this  account.  He  took  unto 
himself  a  Hopi  helpmeet,  —  an  albino,  —  and  a  whim 
sical  pair  they  looked  when  they  came  to  the  Snake 
Dance  the  following  summer. 

This  step  of  Wupa's,  in  view  of  the  repeated  con 
fidences  that  Hopi  maidens  were  not  to  his  taste  any- 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  245 

how,  was  a  surprise  to  his  friends.  His  choice  of  an 
albino  for  a  mate  clears  him  to  some  extent,  as  no 
doubt  he  believes  her  to  be  as  near  an  approach  to  a 
white  woman  as  a  Hopi  may  hope  to  reach.  However, 
his  friends  wish  him  well  and  feel  like  saying,  "Long 
live  Wupa,  'great'  by  name  and  truly  great  in  quip, 
gibe,  and  gest  by  nature. ' ' 

A  visit  to  the  East  Mesa  cannot  be  regarded  as  com 
plete  without  an  interview  with  Toby.  Usually  no 
one  leaves  this  portion  of  Tusayan  without  seeing  him. 
His  name,  which  means  "the  fly,"  exactly  fits  Toby, 
who  has  all  the  pertinacity  of  that  well-known  insect. 

Several  years  ago,  however,  the  writer  failed  to  meet 
Toby  and  remained  in  complete  ignorance  of  his  great 
possibilities,  except  by  hearsay,  until  the  next  season. 
Then  when  the  party  wound  its  way  up  to  the  first 
bench  of  the  mesa  under  the  dizzy  cliffs  and  camped 
on  a  level  spot  near  a  peach  tree  on  land  which  the 
Tewa  have  held  for  two  centuries,  Toby  wras  there  as 
a  reception  committee. 

His  "how  do"  was  rather  startling  and  unexpected. 
After  the  routine  of  handshaking,  Toby  remarked, 
"This  my  Ian',"  and  pointing  to  the  antique  tree 
long  past  fruit -bearing,  "This  my  peach  tlee. "  Proud 
of  his  possessions  he  squatted  on  the  ground  and  drew 
a  plan  of  his  Ian'  and  inquired  as  he  pointed  out  the 
locations  of  his  crops,  "Have  you  seen  my  con  [corn]  ? 
Have  you  seen  my  beanzes?"  Suddenly  an  idea 
struck  him.  He  approached  the  leader  of  the  party 


246  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

and  put  these  questions  to  him,  "You  good  man, 
uneshtan',  you  honesht  man?''  Then  as  if  satisfied, 
he  turned  to  another  of  the  party  and  said,  "You 
handsome  man;  you  beautiful  man,"  and  it  was  not 
long  before  Toby  had  a  packet  of  coveted  smoking  to 
bacco,  although  from  the  unkempt  appearance  of  the 
explorers,  his  laudations  were  base  flattery. 

It  was  plain  that'  Toby  was  desirous  of  airing  his 
remarkable  English,  of  which  he  is  very  proud,  and 
also  of  paving  the  way  to  sundry  small  gratuities. 
These  intentions  of  the  Hopi  are  quite  as  apparent  as 
that  of  the  little  child  who  says,  "Ducky  likes  sweet 
cakes."  Toby  was  asked  to  bring  in  a  burro  load  of 
wood  for  cooking  purposes,  but  with  great  suavity  he 
explained  that  on  this  day  the  Snake  priests  hunted  in 
the  East  world-quarter,  and  according  to  custom  no 
one  must  work  in  that  direction.  On  account  of  these 
conscientious  scruples  of  Toby's,  the  venerable  peach 
tree  was  requisitioned  for  enough  dead  branches  till 
such  time  as  he  should  sally  forth  with  his  burros  for 
cedar  billets. 

The  day  before  the  Antelope  Dance  Toby  came  down 
to  the  camp  on  important  business  chewing  a  moc 
casin  sole  which  he  was  stitching.  He  broached  the 
subject  by  mysteriously  saying,  "Plenty  Na,vaho  come 
to  see  Snake  Dance.  Navaho  velly  bad,  steal  ovely- 
fi  thing."  (This  in  a  furtive  way,  because  the  Hopi  are 
//  afraid  of  the  Navaho.)  "Me  stay,  watch  camp;  you 
go  see  dance;  Navaho  bad  man."  Tt  is  well  to  say 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  247 

that  after  Toby's  watchful  care  at  the  camp  all  the 
baking  powder  and  matches  were  missing.  Few  Hopi 
are  proof  against  these  articles,  especially  before  a 
feast,  and  Toby  is  evidently  no  exception.  He  fought 
shy  of  camp  after  that,  no  doubt  fearing  a  "rounding 
up."  Perhaps,  however,  Toby  appropriated  the 
matches  and  baking  powder  as  rent  for  his  ''Ian'." 

Toby  is  father  of  a  large  family.  When  asked  to 
give  a  census,  he  counted  on  his  fingers,  "Boy,  girl; 
boy,  girl ;  boy, ' '  then  with  great  enthusiasm, l '  Babee ! ' ' 
Toby's  command  of  English  is  due  to  the  fact  that  he 
was  the  prize  pupil  of  a  teacher  at  the  Ream's  Canyon 
School  some  years  ago.  He  delights  to  show  how  he 
can  spell.  If  no  one  should  ask  him  to  exhibit  this 
accomplishment,  he  usually  brings  up  the  subject  by 
asking,  for  instance,  "How  you  spell  box?"  pro 
nounced  "boxsh."  If  ignorance  is  professed,  Toby 
spells  b-o-x,  and  follows  with  dog,  cat,  man,  and  other 
words  of  one  syllable,  and  proudly  finishes  by  writing 
his  own  name  in  the  sand. 

Toby  thus  furnishes  great  amusement  to  sojourners 
at  "Walpi  and  also  leaves  the  suspicion  in  the  minds 
of  most  that  he  is  a  trifle  ' l  light  in  the  upper  story. ' ' 

Another  character  is  "Tom  Sawyer,"  a  Paiute  In 
dian  who  lives  with  the  Peaceful  People  at  the  East 
Mesa.  As  handsome  as  a  Japanese  grotesque  mask 
and  almost  as  taciturn,  his  gravity  seems  to  have  tele 
scoped  his  squat  figure  and  multiplied  the  wrinkles 
in  his  face,  half  hidden  by  his  lank,  grizzled  hair. 


248  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

Keen,  shrewd  eyes  has  he  and  very  evasive.  Tom, 
however,  is  not  "bad"  in  the  Arizona  sense,  nor  will 
his  make-up  allow  him  to  be  altogether  good.  He  is, 
therefore,  a  man,  for  which  this  sketch  is  to  be  con 
gratulated.  While  Tom's  early  history  may  never 
be  known  to  the  world,  his  step  in  leaving  the  Paiute 
for  the  Hopi  is  very  much  in  his  favor.  Here  he  fell 
naturally  in  his  place  as  serf  to  Chakwaina,  of  whom 
something  has  already  been  said. 

Tom  became  washerman  for  the  Fewkes  expedition 
while  the  party  sojourned  at  Walpi.  Percy,  who 
prides  himself  on  his  faultless  "American,"  held  the 
position  in  former  years,  but  having  gotten  a  few 
dollars  ahead,  felt  above  work  at  this  time.  It  must 
be  said  that  Tom  is  an  excellent  laundryman.  The 
idiosyncrasies  of  wayworn  civilized  garb  do  not  stump 
him;  in  fact,  he  is  "ol'  clo'es  man"  for  the  whole 
East  Mesa.  His  many  quests  for  discarded  garments 
to  Winslow,  Holbrook,  and  other  points  on  the  rail 
road  are  always  successful.  The  people  of  Winslow 
affirm  .that  wearing  apparel  often  disappears  from 
clotheslines  and  other  exposed  situations  coincidently 
with  the  visits  of  Hopi,  who  clear  the  town  of  rags  as 
the  winds  do  of  loose  paper.  When  the  physician  of 
the  place  lost  a  pair  of  overshoes  which  were  reposing 
>  on  the  back  kitchen  steps,  he  remembered  too  late  that 
a  Hopi  had  gone  down  the  alley  sometime  before.  The 
disappearance  of  the  overshoes  can  scarcely  arouse  as 
much  wonder  as  their  presence  and  utility  in  arid, 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  249 

dusty  Wiuslow.  No  doubt  Tom  has  caused  many  of 
these  mysterious  disappearances  and  the  spoils  borne 
northward  on  his  patient  burros  have  promoted  a 
dressed-up  feeling  among  the  Hopi  braves. 

It  has  not  yet  been  found  out  whether  Tom  gave 
an  exhibition  of  artistic  lying  or  was  telling  the  truth 
about  the  following  matter.  Tom  was  starting  on  one 
of  his  periodical  clothes  raids  to  Winslow,  and  he  was 
asked  to  bring  back  a  can  of  plaster.  About  a  week 
later  Tom  returned  with  the  following  laconic  tale, 
* '  Snake  bite  burro,  burro  die ;  me  take  can  back,  give 
to  man." 

At  the  time  it  was  thought  that  Tom  had  over 
loaded  his  burro  with  old  clothes  and  had  invented 
the  story.  There  is  much  to  be  said  on  Indian  in 
vention.  If  Tom  is  living  he  is  still  an  active  citizen 
of  Hopiland. 


XII 
THE  ANCIENT   PEOPLE 

The  Southwest  has  always  been  a  storied  land  to  its 
native  dwellers.  Mountain  profile,  sweep  of  plain, 
carved-out  mesa,  deep  canyon,  cave,  lava  stream,  level 
lake  bed,  painted  desert,  river  shore,  spring  and  forest 
are  theirs  in  intimacy,  and  around  them  have  gathered 
legends  which  are  bits  of  ancient  history,  together  with 
multitude  of  myths  of  nature  deities  reaching  back 
into  the  misty  beginning. 

Deep  is  this  intimacy  in  the  practical  affairs  of  life, 
teaching  the  way  to  the  salt,  the  place  of  the  springs, 
the  range  of  the  game,  the  nest  of  the  honey  bee,  the 
home  of  the  useful  plants,  the  quarry  of  the  prized 
stones,  and  the  beds  of  clay  for  pottery,  for  the  desert 
is  home  and  there  is  no  thing  hidden  from  keen  eyes. 
From  far  off,  too,  came  in  trade  shells  from  the  Pacific, 
feathers  from  Mexico,  buffalo  pelts  from  the  Plains, 
and,  perhaps,  pipestone  from  Minnesota,  so  that  1  he- 
land  of  sunshine  was  not  so  isolated  as  one  might 
think,  and  its  resources  fed,  clothed,  and  ministered 
to  the  esthetic  and  religious  needs  of  numerous  tribes 
of  men  from  the  old  days  to  the  present. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  251 

The  white  men  who  tracked  across  the  vast  stretches 
of  the  ' '  Great  American  Desert ' '  no  doubt  saw  mined 
towns  sown  over  the  waste,  and  perhaps  believed  them 
lost  to  history,  little  suspecting  that  within  reach  lived 
dusky-hued  men  to  whom  these  potsherd-strewn 
mounds  and  crumbling  walls  were  no  sealed  book. 
The  newer  explorers  have  drawn  the  old-world  stories 
from  the  lips  of  living  traditionists,  and  by  their 
friendly  aid  have  gathered  the  clues  which,  when 
joined,  will  throw  a  flood  of  light  on  the  wanderings 
of  the  ancient  people.  Through  them  it  has  been 
learned  that  each  pueblo  preserves  with  faithful  care 
the  history  of  its  beginnings  and  the  wanderings  of 
its  clans.  This  at  proper  times  the  old  men  repeat 
and  the  story  often  takes  a  poetical  form  chanted  with 
great  effect  in  the  ceremonies.  As  an  example  of  these 
interesting  myths,  one  should  read  the  Zurii  Ritual  of 
Creation,  that  Saga  of  the  Americans  which  reveals  a 
beauty  and  depth  of  thought  and  form  surprising  to 
those  who  have  a  limited  view  of  the  ability  of  the 
Indian. 

One  thing  is  settled  in  the  minds  of  the  Pueblo 
dwellers.  In  the  beginning  all  the  people  lived  in  the 
seven-story  cave  of  the  underworld,  whence  they 
climbed  toward  the  light  and  after  reaching  the  sur 
face  of  the  earth,  migrated,  led  by  supernatural  be 
ings.  Where  the  mythical  underworld  adventures 
leave  off  begins  a  real  account,  telling  the  wanderings 
of  the  clans  and  the  laying  of  the  foundations  of  the 


252  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

multitudinous  ruins  of  the  Pueblo  region.  It  may 
not  be  possible  to  connect  all  the  ruinous  villages  with 
the  migrations  of  the  present  Indians,  for  there  is 
room  enough  in  this  vast  country  to  have  sunk  into 
oblivion  other  peoples  and  languages,  as  the  vanished 
Piro,  who  passed  away  since  the  white  strangers  caine 
to  Cibola,  but  much  may  be  done  to  gather  the  glit 
tering  threads  before  they  slip  from  sight. 

The  journeyings  and  campings  of  the  ancient  people 
becomes  intelligible  when  the  make-up  of  the  present 
pueblos  is  known.  One  finds  that  every  pueblo  con 
sists  of  clans  which  are  larger  families  of  blood  rela 
tions  having  certain  duties  and  responsibilities  to 
gether;  a  name,  such  as  the  bear,  cloud,  or  century 
plant;  certain  rites  and  ceremonies  to  the  beings; 
clan  officers  and  customs  amounting  to  laws,  and  a 
history  preserved  in  the  minds  of  the  members.  So  it 
will  be  seen  that  a  tribe  among  the  house-builders  is 
composed  of  a  number  of  smaller  tribes,  called  clans, 
each  complete  and  able  to  take  care  of  itself,  forming 
the  present  villages.  Often  in  the  early  days  a  pow 
erful  clan  migrated  long  distances  and  left  members 
in  many  different  places,  because  clan  law  forbids 
marriage  within  the  clan,  and  the  man  must  live  with 
the  people  of  his  wife.  In  these  migrations  portions 
of  a  clan  would  break  off  and  cast  their  lot  with  other 
villages,  and  often  several  clans  traveled  in  company, 
building  their  pueblos  near  one  another,  and  thus 
came  the  groups  of  ruins  so  common  in  the  Southwest. 


MESA  FOLK  OP  HOPILAND  253 

For  this  reason,  all  the  present  villages  have  re 
ceived  swarms  from  other  hives  and  have  sent  out  in 
turn  swarms  from  the  home  village,  during  their  slow 
migrations  around  the  compass.  The  habits  of  the 
ancient  people  thus  led  to  a  constant  flux  and  reflux 
in  the  currents  of  life  in  the  Southwest  and  in  spite 
of  their  substantial  houses  and  works  costly  of  labor 
the  Pueblo  Indians  were  as  migratory  as  the  tent- 
dwellers  of  the  Plains,  though  they  moved  more  slow 
ly.  Their  many-celled  villages  011  mesas  or  on  the 
banks  of  streams,  in  the  cliffs  of  the  profound  can 
yons,  dug  in  the  soft  rocks  or  built  in  the  lava  caves, 
were  but  camps  of  the  wanderers,  to  be  abandoned 
sooner  or  later,  leaving  the  dead  to  the  ministrations 
of  the  drifting  sand. 

Nor  with  the  coming  of  the  white  people  did  the 
wandering  cease.  There  were  Seven  Cities  of  Cibola 
ing  the  subsequent  stretch  of  time,  these  seven  towns 
were  fused  into  the  Pueblo  of  Zuni  and  again  came  a 
dispersal  and  from  this  great  pueblo  formed  the  small 
summer  villages  of  Nutria,  Pescado,  and  Ojo  Caliente. 
A  human  swarm  built  Laguna  two  centuries  ago  to 
swarm  again  other  times.  Acoma  is  mistress  of  Aco- 
mita;  Isleta  has  a  namesake  on  an  island  in  the  Rio 
Grande  near  El  Paso,  and  in  Tusayan  the  farming 
pueblo  of  Moenkapi  Hotavila  and  Ushtioki  in  the 
plains  in  front  of  Walpi,  are  late  additions.  Thus,  in 
times  of  peace,  these  hamlets  spring  up,  each  having 
the  possibilities  of  becoming  large  settlements,  and  in 


254  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

times  of  danger  they  come  together  to  better  with 
stand  the  common  enemy,  for  the  union  born  of  need 
and  strengthened  by  the  coming  of  wily  foes  was  in 
culcated  by  former  experiences.  But  these  unions 
were  never  close,  even  between  the  clans  when  they 
forsook  their  small  community  houses  and  came  to 
gether  forming  tribes.  Between  tribes  of  the  same 
language  there  were  but  the  faintest  traces  of  com 
binations  for  mutual  welfare. 

Perhaps  about  the  time  of  the  landfall  of  Columbus 
a  group  of  tribes  began  to  push  their  way  into  the 
region  of  the  house-builders.18  These  tribes  were  re 
lated  and  had  crept  down  from  the  north,  where  now 
their  kinsfolk  live  under  the  Arctic  Circle.  It  was 
many  years  before  the  Apache  and  Navaho  were 
strong  enough  to  try  conclusions  with  the  settled  peo 
ples,  but  when  they  had  gathered  to  themselves  the 
lawless  from  many  tribes,  then  began  terrible  chap 
ters  of  history  which  only  recently  have  been  written 
to  a  finis.  Wherever  these  conscienceless  savages 
ranged  were  carnage  and  destruction.  The  habits  of 
the  house-builders  changed  and  the  ruins  on  high 
mesas  and  the  lookouts  on  every  hill  tell  plainly  how 
they  sought  defence  from  the  scouting  enemy.  The 
large  towns  in  the  Salinas  of  Manzano  passed  into 
oblivion  under  the  attacks  of  the  Apache  and  began 
a  mythical  career  as  the  "Gran  Quivira"  of  treasure 

is  The  Early  Navaho  and  Apache.  F.  W.  Hodge,  Amer. 
Anthropologist,  July,  1895, 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  255 

hunters.  Great  was  the  devastation  of  which  the  com 
plete  story  may  never  be  told,  yet  nearly  every  tribe 
preserves  legends  of  bloody  contacts  with  the  Navaho 
and  Apache. 

Still  at  an  early  period  the  Navaho  became  changed 
from  a  fierce  warrior  to  a  comparatively  peaceful 
herdsman,  subject  to  the  maddening  vagaries  of  that 
most  whimsical  of  gentle  creatures,  the  sheep.  Early 
in  the  Spanish  colonial  period  the  Navaho  preyed  on 
the  flocks  of  sheep  of  the  Rio  Grande  pueblos,  where 
they  had  been  brought  by  the  Conquistadores,  and  by 
that  act  his  destiny  was  altered.  Later  on,  instead  of 
hunting  the  scalps  of  his  fellow  creatures,  his  flint 
knife  became  more  useful  in  removing  the  wool  from 
the  backs  of  his  charges ;  he  thus  became  famous  as  a 
blanket  weaver,  and  soon  excelled  his  teachers  in  that- 
peaceful  art. 

Other  visitors  and  neighbors  of  the  Pueblo  people 
were  almost  as  undersirable  as  the  Apache  and  Nava 
ho.  The  Comanche  of  the  Plains  brought  ruin  to 
many  a  clan  by  his  forays,  and  his  brother,  the  Ute, 
from  the  mountains  to  the  north,  was  a  dangerous 
enemy  to  encounter  and  at  many  times  in  the  past 
attacked  the  villages  of  the  Hopi.  To  the  west  were 
the  Yuma  and  Mohave,  to  the  south  were  the  Piraa, 
extending  into  Mexico,  and  in  the  Cataract  Canyon  of 
the  Colorado  lived  the  Havasupai  deep  in  the  earth. 
These  have  been  the  neighbors  of  the  Pueblos  since 
recorded  history  began.  Also  the  tent  dwellers  of  the 


256  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

buffalo  plains  sometimes  visited  the  Pueblos,  tracking 
up  the  Canadian,  and  perhaps  other  neighbors  there 
were,  now  vanished  beyond  resurrection  or  legend  or 
the  spade  of  the  archeologist  into  the  dust  of  the  wind 
swept  plains. 

Besides  the  harrying  of  enemies  of  the  wandering 
sort,  there  were  quarrels  among  the  sedentary  tribes 
and  the  old-fashioned  way  of  fighting  it  out  according 
to  Indian  methods  left  many  a  village  desolate.  For 
this  reason  the  villages  were  often  built  on  mesas  be 
fore  the  ancient  enemies  of  their  occupants  began 
their  range  of  the  Southwest,  and  hostilities  were  car 
ried  on  against  brothers  located  near  the  corn  lands 
and  life-giving  springs  of  the  Pueblo  country. 

In  the  ancient  days,  as  at  present,  the  secret  of  the 
distribution  of  Pueblo  men  was  the  distribution  of 
water.  It  seems  that  in  the  vast  expanse  embraced 
in  the  Pueblo  region  every  spring  has  been  visited  by 
the  Indians,  since  whoever  would  live  must  know 
where  there  is  water.  The  chief  springs  near  the  vil 
lages  they  dug  out  and  walled  up  and  built  steps  or 
a.  graded  way  down  to  the  water,  and  often  these 
works  represent  great  labor.  Likewise,  the  irrigation 
canals  and  reservoirs  of  southern  Arizona  show  what 
he  could  do  and  surprise  the  moderns.  One  soon  sees 
that  there  is  not  a  spring  near  the  present  villages  that 
does  not  receive  its  offerings  of  painted  sticks  adorned 
with  feathers,  as  prayers  to  the  givers  of  water.  These 
simple-hearted  folk  in  the  toils  of  drought  seem  to 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  257 

have  all  their  ceremonies  to  bring  rain,  and  there  is 
nothing  else  quite  as  important  in  their  thoughts. 
In  the  same  way  the  Southwest  has  made  the  settlers 
workers  in  stone  and  clay,  for  Nature  has  withheld 
the  precious  wood.  Few  other  parts  of  the  world 
show  so  clear  an  instance  of  the  compelling  power  of 
the  surroundings  on  the  customs  of  a  people. 

Why  or  how  the  pueblo  builders  came  into  this 
inhospitable  region  no  one  may  decide.  The  great 
plateau  extending  from  Fremont's  Peak  to  the  Isthmus 
of  Tehuantepec,  with  its  varied  scenery,  its  plants  and 
animals,  and  its  human  occupants  is  replete  with  inter 
esting  problems  of  the  Old  New  World.  Perhaps  as 
the  people  crowded  from  the  North  along  the  Rockies 
toward  the  fertile  lands  of  Mexico,  some  weaker  tribes 
were  thrust  into  the  embrace  of  the  desert  and  re 
mained  to  work  out  their  destiny.  It  would  appear 
that  no  tribe  could  adopt  the  land  as  a  home  through 
free  choice,  because  the  sparseness  of  the  arid  country 
must  make  living  a  desperate  struggle  to  those  who 
had  not  the  precious  seeds  of  corn. 

Corn  is  the  mother  of  the  Pueblos,  ancient  and  mod 
ern.  Around  it  the  Indian's  whole  existence  centers, 
and  the  prevalent  prayers  for  rain  have  corn  as  the 
motive,  for  corn  is  life.  Given  corn  and  rain  or 
flowing  water,  even  in  small  amount,  and  the  Indian 
has  no  fear  of  hard  times,  but  prospers  and  multiplies 
in  the  sanitorium  where  his  lot  is  cast. 

If  we  travel  backward  into  the  Ancient  Southwest 


258  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

we  must  leave  behind  many  things  that  came  to  the 
people  since  the  Spaniards  sallied  from  Mexico  to  the 
new  land  of  wonders.  Sheep,  goats,  chickens,  burros, 
horses,  cattle  there  are  none,  and  the  children  of 
the  sun  have  no  domestic  animal  except  the  turkey. 
The  coyote-like  dog  haunted  the  pueblos,  but  his  an 
cient  enemy,  the  cat,  was  not  there  to  dispute  with 
him.  No  peaches  or  apricots  were  on  the  bill  of  fare, 
and  the  desert  must  be  scoured  for  small  berries  and 
the  fruit  of  the  yucca  and  prickly-pear.  Corn,  beans, 
melons,  and  squashes  there  were,  but  wheat,  oats,  and 
alfalfa  came  from  other  hands.  What  would  be  the 
deprivation  if  sugar,  coffee,  flour,  and  baking  powder 
were  cut  off  from  the  present  Indians.  The  ancients 
had  none,  nor  were  the  useful  vessels  of  tin  and  iron 
for  cooking  dreamed  of.  The  agave  of  the  South  furn 
ished  a  sweet  in  the  roasted  leaves,  which  took  the 
place  of  sugar  and  went  far  and  wide  by  early  com 
merce.  Tobacco  always  grew-  wild  around  the  pueblos, 
but  the  ancients  never  knew  the  fascination  of  the 
modern  leaf. 

Before  the  trader's  cotton  stuffs,  were  those  of 
native  cotton  and  before  woolen  stuffs  there  were 
warm  blankets  of  strips  of  rabbit  fur  interwoven  with 
cord,  feather  garments,  mats  of  yucca,  and  blankets 
of  mountain  goat  and  buffalo  wool,  with  girdles  and 
stockings  of  the  same  textile.  Perhaps  more  in  use 
than  these  for  clothing  were  the  tanned  skins  of  the 
elk,  deer,  and  antelope,  ornamented  with  native  col- 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  259 

ors  before  aniline  dyes  came  into  existence.  Buffalo 
skins  were  a  part  of  the  belongings  of  the  ancients 
secured  through  trade  with  the  people  of  the  plains. 
There  were  sandals  of  plaited  yucca  and  moccasins 
of  turkey  feathers.  For  jewelry  there  were  seeds  of 
the  pine,  shells,  beads,  and  ornaments  of  turquoise 
and  colored  stones,  quite  enough  to  satisfy  the  love 
of  ornament  and  quite  suitable  to  the  dusky  skins  of 
the  Indians,  as  anyone  may  verify,  if  he  will  travel 
to  the  pueblos. 

About  the  houses  every  vestige  of  metal  and  glass 
is  absent.  The  windows  may  have  been  glazed  with 
irregular  plates  of  selenite,  and  the  marks  of  fire  and 
the  rude  stone  axe  are  upon  the  beams.  Instead  of 
the  gun,  curved  clubs,  the  bow,  and  stone-tipped  ar 
rows  hang  from  the  rafters  with  the  lance  thrown  by 
the  atlatl.  In  the  corner  stands  a  hoe  of  stone  and  a 
digging  stick;  pottery,  gourds,  and  basketry  are  the 
sole  utensils,  the  knife  is  a  chipped  stone  blade  set 
with  pine  gum  in  a  wooden  handle,  and  the  horns  of 
the  mountain  sheep  are  formed  into  spoons. 

The  rooms  are  smoky  and  dark,  since  the  chimney 
is  not  yet,  and  the  fire  on  the  floor  must  be  nursed, 
for,  when  it  goes  out,  it  must  be  rekindled  by  the 
friction  of  two  pieces  of  wood  or  borrowed  from  a 
neighbor  in  the  manner  of  primitive  times,  not  yet 
forgotten  among  the  advanced  sharers  of  civilization. 
Much  >might  be  added  to  this  picture  of  the  early  life 
of  the  Pueblos,  and  the  exploration  of  the  ruins  will 


260  MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND 

tell  us  yet  more  to  excite  our  interest  and  admiration. 

Among  the  inhabited  Hopi  pueblos  are  many  seats 
of  the  ancient  people  now  become  mounds  or  fallen 
walls  and  their  memory  a  tradition.  There  were  four 
mission  churches;  hardly  a  vestige  of  them  remains, 
and  a  few  of  the  carved  beams  support  the  roofs  of 
pagan  kivas.  This  bears  strong  testimony  to  the  com 
pleteness  of  the  weeding  out  of  the  foreign  missions 
by  the  Hopi  more  than  two  centuries  ago.  The  Hopi 
have  always  been  free  and  independent,  even  when 
the  search  for  gold  by  the  Conquistadores  had  been 
turned  to  the  search  for  souls  to  the  subjugation  of 
most  of  the  other  Pueblos  in  the  Southwest. 

Several  of  the  interesting  ruins  in  Tusayan  have 
been  explored.  Sikyatki,  or  "Yellow  House,"  lying 
on  the  sand  hills  four  miles  east  of  Walpi,  has  yielded 
many  strange  and  beautiful  relics  of  pottery  and 
stone,  as  has  Awatobi,  a  large  town  on  a  mesa  ten 
miles  southeast  of  Walpi,  destroyed  about  the  year 
1700  by  the  other  villagers.  Here  may  be  traced  the 
walls  of  the  mission  of  San  Bernardino  de  Awatobi, 
a  large  church  built  of  blocks  of  adobe  mixed  with 
straw.  The  church  stood  on  the  mesa  commanding 
a  superb  view  of  the  lava  buttes  to  the  south  and 
must  have  been  in  its  time  an  imposing  building.  The 
old  town  of  Kisakobi,  near  Walpi,  has  yielded  relics 
in  profusion  of  a  later  period  than  the  sites  mentioned, 
and  it  is  here  that  we  must  look  for  the  arts  of  the 
Hopi  just  before  they  came  into  the  light  of  history. 


MESA  FOLK  OF  HOPILAND  261 

The  prevalence  of  ruins  around  the  Hopi  mesas  is 
in  keeping  with  the  movements  of  the  tribes  in  the 
Pueblo  region.  Of  the  seven  Hopi  towns,  Oraibi  is 
the  only  one  now  on  the  site  it  occupied  when  the 
Spaniards  came  to  Tusayan. 

Not  long  ago,  according  to  Hopi  traditionists,  some 
clans  withdrew  from  Tusayan  and  rebuilt  cliff-houses 
in  the  Canyon  de  Chelly,  where  before  some  of  the 
clans  that  finally  settled  in  Tusayan  lived  for  a  time. 

Without  doubt  the  connection  between  the  early 
Hopi  clans  and  the  people  who  lived  in  the  cliff-dwell 
ings  was  close  at  a  f ormer  period,  and  there  is  reason 
to  believe  that  the  older  clans  who  are  said  to  have 
come  in  from  the  North  possessed  the  black-and-white 
pottery  and  the  arts  of  the  cliff-dwellers.  Other  clans 
coming  from  the  South  must  have  worked  considera 
ble  changes  in  Hopi  arts.  While  the  southern  clans 
brought  yellow  pottery,  it  remained  for  the  great  in 
flux  of  peoples  from  the  Rio  Grande  to  introduce  the 
artistic  ware  with  complicated  symbolic  decoration 
that  rendered  the  Tusayan  ceramics  superior  to  all 
others  in  northern  America. 


INDEX 


Albinos,    17 

Ancient  life,   pictures   of,    257-259 

Announcements  of  town   crier,   43 

Apache,   26 

Astronomy,  primitive,   44 

Attacks    of    Navaho    and    Apache, 

254 

Basket  dance,   159 
Baskets,  kinds  of,  90 
^^-•Basket  making,    91-95 
Basket,   materials  of,   91 
Basket  struggle,    161 
Baskets,  uses  of,  93 
Blessing  of  th^fields,   37 
Burial,   130,   131 
Carving,     joinery,     painting     and 

drawing,  87-90 

Ceremonies,    132;    basis    of,    135, 
*     136 
— *»^Ceremonial     calendar,      regulation 

of,   148 
Chakwaina,     biography     of,     231- 

>233 
hildren,     games     of,     107,     108; 
education   of,    119-122 
Clan  ceremonies,    135;   laws,   36 
Cliff  dwellers,    261 
Climate,    15 
Cold,   disregard  of,    33 
Communication  of  news,  42 
Constellations  named,   44 
ration,   37 

,    cooking   of,    66 :    cultivation 
and   care    of,    61,    62 ;    diet   of, 
65;     feast,     61;     grinding,     62; 
meal,    64 ;    origin   myth   of,    65 ; 
planting   of,    60,    61 
Cornfield,   appearance  of,    60 
Cotton,   use  of,   83 
Courtship,   122-123 
Crafts,   70 

Day,    division   of,    45 
Death,  ideas  concerning,  128,  129, 

130 

Dedication    of   infant   to    the    sun, 
117 


Dolls,   making  of,   87 

Dyeing,  85 

Eagle     capture,      170;      cemetery, 

171;   egg  shrine,    171;    feathers 

in    ceremony,     170 ;     ownership 

of,  168 

Education   of  children,   218,   2 
Environment,     effect     in     shaping 

culture,    15 
Fewkes    (Dr.    J.    Walter),    xl,    47, 

88,    151,    159,    179;    on   Kopeli, 

221-223 

Fields,   guarding  of,   56 
Flute,   ceremony  of,   156-159 
Fire    priests,    166,    167;    making, 

164 

Founding  of  new  villages,  253 
Fuel  gathering,   71 
Games,     athletic     and     sedentary, 

105,    106 
Gardens,    53 
Hano,   origin  of,   20 
Havasupai,   25 
Head  flattening,   16 
Herbs,     collection    of,     58 ;    mixed 

with  tobacco,   60 
Historical  ruins,   260 
Hodge    (F.  W.),  x,  254 
Honani    family,    account    of,    228- 

231 
House,      arrangement      of,       100; 

building  of,    95-101 ;    dedication 

ceremonies,     99,     100;     descrip 
tion  of,   22-23 

Hunts,   ceremonial,   172,   173,   174 
Industry,   71 

Intiwa,   biography  of,  227,  228 
Kachinas,   135 

Kachina   ceremonies,    145-146 
Kisakobi,    260 
Kivas,  construction  of,   Walpi,  21- 

22 

Kopeli,    biography   of,    218-223 
Labor,   division  of,    69 
Lalakonti    ceremony,    159-161 
Land,  ownership  of,   37 


264 


INDEX 


Laws,  38 

Longevity,    17 

Lummis  (C.  F.),  4 

Mamzrauti    ceremony,    161-163 

Marriage,    123-128 

Meals,   67 

Medicine  men,  167,  168;  theory 
and  practice,  58 

Migration  of  Apache  and  Navaho, 
254;  of  Pueblo,  253 

Mindeleff   (Cosmos),    101 

Mission  churches,   260 

Moccasin  making,  72,  73,  74 

Months  of  summer,  33,  34,  35 ;  of 
winter  30,  31,  32 

Mungwe,    biography    of,    233-235 

Mushongnovi  pueblo,   23 

Music,  character  of,  103;  of  Flute 
ceremony,  103,  104,  105 

Myth  of  Alosaka,  193 ;  Dr.  Fewkes 
quoted,  189;  of  flint  clad  giant, 
186,  187;  of  Great  Elk,  185, 
186;  of  man-eagle,  180-185;  of 
migration,  190-194,  196,  197- 
200;  of  monsters,  179;  of 
plumed  serpent,  194,  195;  of 
sun  twins,  187,  188 

Naming  customs,   117 

Nampeo,   75,   76 

Nampeo,   potter,   20 

Nashihiptuwa  on  the  golden  age, 
213-217 

Natal   rites,    114-115 

Native  worship,   134-135 

Navaho  contracts,   24 

New  fire  ceremony,   163-165 

Niman  Kachina  ceremony,  146- 
148 

Oraibi,  location  of,  260;  pueblo, 
24 

Organization  of  ancient  Pueblos, 
252 

Origin  of  pueblo  builders,   257 

Paiute,   26 

Palulukong  ceremony,   140-145 

Physical  characteristics,   16 

Pima,  26,  27 

Plants,  knowledge  of,  57;  lore  of, 
59 ;  uses  of,  59 

Planting   stick,    60 

Pottery,  ancient,  261 ;  burning, 
80,  81,  82;  clays,  77;  evolution 
of,  78,  79;  paints,  80;  super 
stition  regarding,  83;  tools,  78 

Powamu   ceremony,    139,    140 

Prayersticks  in  springs,  256 


Preservation  of  tradition,   251 

Primitive  commerce,  250 

Pueblo   origin   accounts,   251,   252 

Punishments,   38 

Routes  to  Pueblos,  13 

Running,    feats   of,    108,113 

Saalako,  medicine  woman,  biog 
raphy  of,  225-227 

Sandals,  74,   75 

Seed  gathering,   67 

Social  organization,    35 

Sheep,   introduction  of,   83,   255 

Shepherds,    39-40 

Shipaulovi  pueblo,  24 

Shrines,    175-178 

Shumopayi  pueblo,  24 

Sichomovi  pueblo,  origin  of  name, 
20 

Sikyatki,  ancient  pueblo  de 
stroyed,  210;  ruins  of,  260 

Snake  dance,  148-155;  legend, 
155-156 

Songs,  purchase  of,  102;  variety 
of,  105 

Soyaluna  ceremony,   136-139 

Springs,  53 ;  disappearance  of, 
54;  Flute  Dance  in,  54;  names 
of,  54;  offerings  in,  53;  sacred, 
54 

Street  market,   40 

Summer  occupations,    33 

Tewa,  migration  of,  20;  visits  of 
pueblos,  25 

Time,  determination  of,  43,  44: 
reckoning  in  birth  rites,  114; 
record,  44 

Toby,  biography  of,   245,  247 

"Tom  Sawyer,"  biography  of, 
247-249 

Totem  names,   46,  47 

Town  crier,  or  speaker  chief,  41, 
42 

Town  patrol,   39 

Traders,  ability  of,   38 

Tradition  of  Apache  raids,  202 ; 
of  destruction  of  Awatobi,  210- 
213;  of  flood,  203;  of  former 
location,  304;  of  origin  of 
Hano,  208;  of  Spanish  con 
querors,  206,  207;  of  the  Span 
ish  Friars,  204,  205 

Turkey,  172 

Tusayan,  physical  description  of, 
13 

Unwarlike  character  of  Hopi,  209 


INDEX  265 

Villages    located    near    water,    50;  Weaving,  82-86 

on  mesas,  18  Wedding      costume,       127        128  • 

Vpth    (H.   R.),    128  blanket,    126 

Walpi,     changes     due    to     contact,  Wiki    and    Supela,    biography    of 
19;    description   of,    21;    found-  223,  224,  225 

ed    1590,    21  Winter   occupations,    29,    30 

Wars  among  Pueblos,  256  Women,  house  builders.  96 

Water,     abstinence    from    by    ani-  Wupa,  biography  of,   235-245 

mals,  52 ;  carriers,  53 ;  hunting  Yeast,     chewed,     64 

of,   51;  jars,  hidden,  50;  signs,  Zuni,    association  with,   25 
51 


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"     un\/4.    197417 


-" 


AH/C 


7  1974 


APR    4  1978 


•MAR 


4  1978 


HUB 


*78- 


1981 


JAN  1  8  2000 


LD21A-60m-8,'70 
(N8837slO)476 — A-32 


General  Library 

University  of  California 

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